1970 Brazil ‘better’ than Spain – Pele

SAO PAULO – Soccer legend Pele said here Wednesday that he believed the Brazilian side which won the 1970 World Cup was “better” than the Spanish squad that won Sunday’s Euro 2012 final.

“Each generation has its preferences but without doubt, if we are comparing, the 1970 generation was better,” Pele said.

“The 1970 Brazil team had many more (great) individual players than Spain, which has two or three excellent players,” said Pele who was part of the squad that trounced Italy 4-1 in the 1970 World Cup final.

Pele however had high praise for the free-flowing, attacking football style that enabled Spain to trounce Italy 4-0 in Kiev and to be rated currently as the best team in the world.

Pele was meanwhile asked to clarify his comments in April suggesting that Brazil’s Santos star Neymar was better than Argentina’s Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi, widely viewed as in a class of his own.

Pele said it was unfair to compare the 20-year-old Santos playmaker with an international career of only 18 months, with “the best player in the world, who is Messi”.

“Neymar has everything to be the new Messi, the new Maradona,” Pele said, pointing out that Messi has 15 years of international experience.

“Imagine if Neymar had the experience of Messi, who would be better?” Pele asked. — AFP