President of Benfica remembers the way the former coach calmed him down after his expulsion in Germany-Portugal in 1997
• Photo: Vítor Mota
Rui Costa fondly remembered Artur Jorge, highlighting the importance of the former player and coach for Benfica, in particular, and for Portuguese football, in general.
“A huge sadness, as they said. A reference in national and world football, all Portuguese must be proud of people who had careers like that of Mr. Artur Jorge. I am also representing Benfica, as president, for everything he gave to the club, as a player and coach, but also in a personal capacity, as he was my coach in the national team. It’s a huge sadness to see people like that leave, so dear and so good for the country, who deserve this tribute from the whole country”, he said, to journalists, the red president, at the entrance to the Basílica da Estrela, where the wake of the former coach, who died yesterday at the age of 78, is taking place this Friday.
Artur Jorge’s importance for Rui Costa extended to the National Team. “He coaches the national team after Euro’1996 and for all of us in that generation, who hadn’t had the opportunity to have coach Artur Jorge earlier, it was a bit like ‘the king will coach us’. It was the feeling of ‘seeing what will this give, what is he really like'”, recalled Rui Costa, later recalling the “story he never likes to tell”, relating to the expulsion in the 1997 Germany-Portugal, when the referee showed him a second yellow when he was be replaced, precipitating the draw and consequent goodbye to qualification for the 1998 World Cup.
“My expulsion in Germany by Marc Batta ended up taking us out of the 1998 World Cup and he paid, unfairly, for that. I was desperate and he tried to get me to lift my head. You know the profile of this gentleman well, a great man, intelligent and a great leader of men. That’s what he did with me that day and I thank him. It was a privilege to have him with us”, highlighted the leader of the eagles.
Asked about the words by José Mourinho, who stated that “Portugal forgot that there was a history of our sport”, Rui Costa once again highlighted the importance of Artur Jorge in the evolution of national football: “He was a great lord of Portuguese football and as such, like other Portuguese in other areas, must be well remembered by the country. Unfortunately, due to the size of our country, and increasingly having more of a name abroad, but at those times when he played and trained there weren’t all those means for us to be known abroad. And Artur Jorge is one of those characters who carried the name of Portuguese football high.” By Mário Duarte
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2024-02-23 21:27:54
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