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Mbappé, dubbed by the "King"

The "King" himself, who died Thursday at the age of 82, did not originally want an heir.

"As in music, where there is only one Frank Sinatra and one Beethoven, or in the arts, with only one Michelangelo, in football, there is only one Pelé", had first released the one who was Brazilian Minister of Sports in 1998. "My father and my mother have closed the factory!", He also said.

But, in front of his TV, he had however been conquered by Kylian Mbappé, revelation of the World Cup-2018, who became the second youngest scorer in the World Cup final since the Brazilian legend in 1958.

"If Kylian continues to equal my records like this, I will have to put on my crampons...", had even tweeted "O Rei".

But this kind of tribute scares a little.

"There is only one + King +. I am just Kylian. I know very well that I will never do what he did", explained the PSG player on April 2, 2019, during an interview joint with Pelé, granted to AFP.

When AFP asked the Brazilian what advice he could give Mbappé to succeed in the same career as him, the answer came: "He doesn't need it. I just told him that he had to be a good boy, a nice person. But above all to stay calm (laughs)".

And bear the comparison...

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Zico, the "White Pelé"

The "White Pelé" Zico abounds.

"A lot of players suffered because, when they took over Pelé's position (...), they were under pressure," he told AFP before the 2014 World Cup.

"It was in France that we started with this nickname, it was the French who made me bear this responsibility", said the former playmaker. "I never liked it, because Pelé , it's Pelé, and it's a responsibility".

Former Brazilian footballer Zico, often nicknamed "the white Pelé", on March 30, 2004 in Singapore, while he was Japan coach © ROSLAN RAHMAN / AFP/Archives

"I am proud that people remember me and compare me to Pelé, because he is the best player in the history of football," he said.

"Now to step onto the pitch and people wanting me to do what Pele was doing, I never accepted that, that's something else."

Zico was a kind of viceroy of "futebol": the idol of Flamengo, the most popular club in Brazil, honored the N.10 and illuminated the 1980s and the Maracana of which he is the historical top scorer.

But unlike his eldest with the triple crown, the "White Pelé" has a frustrating history with the World Cup: "I played three World Cups and only lost one match. And I never played a final. It's football", noted the one who had to lose in particular on penalties against France during the 1986 edition.

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Robinho and Neymar, the princes

Robinho and Neymar hatched at Santos, the club made legendary by Pelé.

The first, frail kid and dribbler, becomes the "Prince" when Pelé, then close to the juvenile categories of Santos, dubs him: "This kid will become big".

The "Prince" contributes at only 18 years old to dust off the palmares of Santos with the title of champion of Brazil in 2002, the first trophy garnered after 18 years of scarcity, before a second in 2004. He is transferred with great fanfare to Real Madrid but his career is falling apart quickly (Manchester City, AC Milan, returns to Santos...).

He writes a dotted history with the "Seleçao", between a great Copa America 2007 and many eclipses.

Brazilian star Neymar carries a poster of Pelé at the end of a World Cup match in Qatar on December 5, 2022 © Antonin THUILLIER / AFP/Archives

His first return to Santos in 2010 coincided with the emergence of another phenomenon, Neymar, whom he took under his wing.

The club returns to glory: this crested weakling will be the engine of the conquest of the Copa Libertadores in 2011. But this time, the comparison with Pelé is muted, and he is rather nicknamed "the Jewel" because of his mind-boggling technique.

For Zico, "Neymar is one of the three best players in the world. He has the N.10 but does not fulfill the function of a traditional N.10. But as it is the big name (of the team) and that the N.10 has always had this function since Pelé, it came back to him".

"Ney" becomes the most expensive player in the world in the summer of 2017 by moving from Barça to Paris SG for 222 million euros.

But his simulations or his irritability have blurred his image.

And the World Cup was once again denied to him in December in Qatar.

Career and main statistics of Pelé and Neymar © Gustavo IZUS / AFP

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But also...

Physique à la Pelé and originally from Bauru where the "King" grew up, the first "new Pelé" was a certain Washington, a modest player from the 1970s and 80s who had dazzled observers at the 1971 Cannes Tournament, without a future.

He fully felt the pressure: his nickname created demands from the supporters.

He died at age 57 in 2010 of kidney failure.

Abedi Ayew -known as Abedi Pelé-, triple African Ballon d'Or (1991, 1992, 1993), was nicknamed Pelé after winning the 1982 African Cup with Ghana at the age of 18, and for his frenzied dribbling, and never never complained about it.

But if he was decisive in the 1993 Champions League final won by Marseille, he was never able to play in the World Cup with the "Black Stars".

Freddy Adu was nicknamed the "new Pelé" at 14 when he played his first professional match in 2004. But after Benfica and Monaco, the American international fell into third-rate clubs.

There was only one Pelé.

© 2022 AFP