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The world’s greatest ever footballer™ on pampered pros, Cristiano Ronaldo (no link meant there, honestly) and the hopelessness of Sylvester Stallone...

Would you say modern footballers are too pampered these days, Pele?
“Well, players these days have it all so easy. Yes, they have pressure, but I think they also have everything taken care of for them. I spoke to my friend Bobby Charlton and remember him telling me how all the players have everything done for them in England. They have all the right preparation, the best boots, the best footballs, the best pitches, everything. It is very different now than when I played.”

You spent the first 18 years of your career with Santos in Brazil, before signing for the New York Cosmos. Were you ever tempted to play in Europe?
“Back in the 1960s I was approached to join Manchester United. I don’t know how serious it was, but I wasn’t ever really keen because I loved it so much at Santos. I also had the chance to join Real Madrid and Juventus, but nothing materialised. Both teams bought other Brazilian players and I was offered shares in Fiat cars to join Juventus, but I said no. My preference was always to stay with Santos, even when the president said that he was ready to accept a proposal for me.”

Do you believe modern players lack the loyalty that players of your generation had?
“Money was never my motivation as a player, and it disappoints me when I see some players moving clubs all the time for money. I don’t see much loyalty at all. It is a real shame. I see players kissing the badges of one club one week, and the next week they are kissing a new badge. It means nothing to them. I don’t understand how they can keep switching loyalties. And it’s the children I feel sorry for, because they look up to these guys and don’t know whether to follow their team or their favourite player. It’s confusing for them.”

What do you think of English football?
“I have always liked English teams. In the 1970s and 1980s, I was a Liverpool fan. I don’t know why especially, perhaps because they were the top team back then, but I used to follow them for a while. In the last 10 or 15 years, I have enjoyed following Manchester United the most. They play the game the right way and, in Brazil, Manchester United are far and away the most popular team. The Premier League is the most exciting league to watch in the world – there’s no doubt about that at all.”

What do you think of the increasing number of Brazilians playing in the Premier League?
“Personally, I would prefer young Brazilians – like Lucas at Liverpool or Anderson at Manchester United – to go elsewhere in Europe before they try to play English, Spanish or Italian football. Players like Ronaldo and Ronaldinho went to Holland and France beforehand, to adapt to European life. It’s very, very difficult to come straight from Brazil to a big European league and play well. Lucas has a very hard job to displace players like Steven Gerrard and Javier Mascherano, who make a very good combination. I am a big admirer of Mascherano; he does a solid job in the midfield, tackling and keeping the ball. He’s very underrated, I think.”

What do you make of Cristiano Ronaldo, the reigning Fifa World Player of the Year? Is he a player you like?
“Cristiano reminds me so much of a player I thought was brilliant many years ago – George Best. He is the closest I have seen to Best since he was at his peak. The way he runs with the ball at speed, on the left and on the right, and with such skill. He even wore the same number on the same red shirt as Best did. I love watching Ronaldo play – he’s an incredibly talented individual.”

You’ve never ventured into management, but which coaches in the modern era do you most admire?
“Jose Mourinho is a manager I like a lot. I like him, and I like his management style. He’s successful and is a tough, disciplined man. In modern football, you need discipline; it’s a good thing, and he makes sure his teams have it. I rate him as a coach very highly, and I like the way he talks so straight.”

Finally, tell us about filming Escape to Victory – what was that like?
“When we made the film, it was very funny. I was only there for 15 days or so, but we all had a great time. I remember clearly that Michael Caine was a very good footballer. I think he could have been a professional if he hadn’t become an actor. He held his own with all the professionals in that film. The same can’t be said of Sylvester Stallone, though. He really didn’t understand football at all, and he had trouble kicking the ball – even when it wasn’t moving. I believe that the original script had Sly scoring the winning goal with that overhead kick – I spent a lot of time trying to teach him how to do it, but he never even got close to managing it. He was so bad it was funny. So they changed the story and made me score that famous goal instead.”

ADRIAN CLARKE