Nilton Santos

Nilton dos Santos (Brazilian Portuguese: [ˈniwtõ ˈsɐ̃tus]; 16 May 1925 – 27 November 2013) was a Brazilian footballer who played defender. Born in Rio de Janeiro, he was a pioneering left back, being one of first full backs to participate in the offensive game. He played all his professional club career for Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas.

He was called "The Encyclopedia" because of his knowledge of the sport of football. He was world class both at defending and attacking and possessed very good technique. Nilton was a key player in defence during the 1954, 1958 and 1962 World Cup finals (he was also in the Brazilian squad for the 1950 finals, but made no appearances) and became famous for scoring a magnificent goal in the 1958 tournament when Brazil played Austria. Dribbling his way through the whole field, he finished with a superb shot, driving his coach Vicente Feola crazy (he kept on insisting for Nilton to retreat to the defensive field, but was ignored until the goal was scored).

Regarded as one of the greatest left wingbacks in the history of the game, Nilton Santos is a member of the World Team of the 20th Century, and was named by Pelé one of the top 125 greatest living footballers at a FIFA Awards ceremony in 2004.

Nilton Santos played for only two teams in his professional career; Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas and the Brazilian national team collecting 75 caps and scoring 3 goals.

Santos died of a lung infection on 27 November 2013, aged 88, in Rio de Janeiro.