Watch Carlos Alberto scores best team goal in World Cup history

Brazil were beating Italy 3-1 with four minutes remaining in the final when Alberto, a right fullback, finished a sweeping move with aplomb.

Alberto’s goal is widely hailed as the best in Brazil’s World Cup history, and many argue it’s the greatest goal scored in any World Cup. It also stands as the iconic image of Brazil’s 1970 team, which many remember as the best World Cup squad of all time. That team included Pele, Jairzinho and Robert Rivelino, but Alberto led them all as captain.

Carlos Albero Torres described how he scored that goal in an interview with FIFA.com

“It all started with Tostao winning the ball out on the left,” Carlos Alberto told FIFA.com. “He played it to Piazza, Piazza to Gerson and Gerson to Clodoaldo.

“We were winning 3-1 and the team was playing the ball around, just running the clock down. I was at the back, taking a breather. All I wanted was for the referee to bring the game to an end.

“Clodoaldo went past three players and when he laid it off to Rivelino on the left wing, I remembered what (coach Mario) Zagallo had said about pulling the opposition over to the left.

“I had a look and saw that the whole of my flank was wide open because Jairzinho was over on the left and had (Italy’s Giacinto) Facchetti with him for a company.

“I said to myself: ‘I’m going to wait, and if the ball goes to Jairzinho and I sense that Jairzinho’s going to play it to Pele, then I’m going to go because I know that Pele will give me the ball’.

“And that’s what happened. I gave it all I had and found the energy to sprint at least 50 metres and get in a position to score the goal.