“I only saw that it was a penalty reviewing the bid. At the time, when in doubt, I took two steps. The referee was far away, he didn’t see it. It was pure trickery, the kind we learn in naked.”
This sentence, published in Placar magazine, is by left-back Nilton Santos (1925-2013), nicknamed “Football Encyclopedia”, about one of the most controversial moves in the World Cups.
It happened exactly 60 years ago, on June 6, 1962, at the World Cup in Chile, when Brazil and Spain played the final game of each team in Group 3.
Brazil, the current world champion, led the group, and with a draw qualified for the knockout stages.
Spain, with a decent team and reinforced by the legendary Puskás (the biggest name in Hungarian football, who later obtained Spanish citizenship), needed the victory to advance.
At the Sausalito stadium, in Viña del Mar, just over 18,000 fans watched a great display by the European team, which took the lead in the 35th minute of the first half, with Adelardo, and was superior to a Brasl without Pelé, who had been injured in previous match.
Goalkeeper Gylmar, with good saves, prevented the Spaniards from boasting a wider advantage.
In the second half, the scenario did not change, and the bid referred to by Nilton Santos took place in the 11th minute.
The captain of Spain, Enrique Collar, advanced through the right wing, passed the marking of Zagallo and entered the area, where was Nilton Santos. The Brazilian stretched out his left leg and there was a shock. The attacker fell.
penalty Just not. Nilton Santos, cleverly, taking advantage of the fact that the referee, the Chilean Sergio Bustamante, was not well placed, took steps forward and positioned himself close to the penalty area line, hands on his hips, as if to indicate that the foul had been out of it.
There are many people who, when observing the play, say that it was not even an infraction. Difficult conclusion. Nilton Santos made the move towards the rival and did not reach the ball. Collar, the Brazilian’s left leg in front, bumped into it as he advanced and plummeted. Dig? It might be.
The first fact is that Nilton Santos himself considered the maximum penalty, according to his words (“I only saw that it was a penalty reviewing the bid”).
The second fact is that his trickery paid off, and there was no maximum penalty, but a close foul in the penalty area.
This is the most famous move remembered from this match alluding to favoring the Brazilian team. But it wasn’t the only or the most scandalous.
This one came right after, in the free kick. Puskás lifted the ball in the area, the Brazilian defense headed it to the middle of the area. The ball went up and, in the fall, Joaquín Peiró hit a beautiful bicycle and placed the ball in the angle of Gylmar.
It would be 2-0, but Bustamante raised his arm and canceled the goal. Because? A mystery still unsolved, and possibly never will be. I’ve seen the bid dozens of times and haven’t found any irregularities.
Third fact: after that, Brazil improved, and in two moves along the back line, one by Zagallo and another by Garrincha, they turned the game around, with two goals from Amarildo, aka Possesso, Pelé’s substitute.
Brazil advanced, Spain was in the way, in two of the most egregious mistakes in World Cups. Surely, the refereeing failures recorded in the shortest time interval in favor of a given selection.
In the “Copa de Garrincha”, elected the best player of the competition, having been one of the top scorers of the World Cup, with four goals (two of them in the semifinal against Chile) and two assists, besides the disconcerting dribbles and the fulminant runs, the refereeing of Bustamante was decisive for Brazil’s second championship.
In time: This was not the only time Brazil was favored in a World Cup. There were others, and one I remember took place in the 2002 World Cup in South Korea/Japan. In the round of 16, with 0-0 on the scoreboard, Marc Wilmots, the captain of Belgium, beat Roque Júnior and scored the goal. I saw and reviewed the play: clean, without fail. However, the striker’s goal was disallowed by the Jamaican referee Peter Jam Prendergast. Final result: Brazil 2 x 0 Belgium.
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