Formidable captain of Brazil team in 1982 World Cup

Socrates - Socrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira - who has died of septic shock aged 57, was one of the most unlikely of Brazil’s resplendent footballers. Bearded and seemingly indestructible, he stood 1.91m (6ft 3in) tall, once admitting: “I am an anti-athlete. I cannot deny myself certain lapses from the strict regime of a sportsman. You have to take me as I am.” He was, in fact, a formidable attacking midfielder, prominent in two World Cups in the 1980s, initially a centre forward but, for most of his international career, a dominating figure in every sense, in central midfield. He smoked incessantly, rather like Gerson, a previous general of the Brazilian midfield, he drank large quantities of beer, and if, eventually, such indulgences may have caught up with him, they never seem to have impinged on his extensive football career. The first child of a self-educated intellectual father, who named three of his sons after Greek philosophers, Socrates was born in Belem, the city on the banks of the Amazon estuary and capital of the north Brazilian state of Para. But it was in Ribeirao Preto, 290km (180 miles) north-west of Sao Paulo, that Socrates played with the Botafogo club (1974-78). The greater part of his career (1978-84) was spent with the Corinthians club of Sao Paulo. In his early days there, he was notably unwilling to join in the wild celebrations of his team-mates when he scored a goal (of which there were 172 over the course of 297 matches); so much so that the fans complained to the club president. He, in turn, begged Socrates to be more demonstrative, and Socrates obliged, in future, with parodic celebrations, kneeling on the ground, throwing up his arms and invoking success from whatever gods there might be. Though he may have seemed to trot unhurriedly about the ground, Socrates could suddenly and formidably accelerate. When the ball was in the air, his great height and a notable leap made him irresistible, and he had a fierce right-footed drive. Taking penalties was a particular forte, though, strangely enough, he was not often used by the Brazilian national team to execute them. Altogether he played 60 games for Brazil from 1979, scoring 22 goals. Tele Santana, the Brazil manager, made him captain of the team. In this role he was known for encouraging his team-mates with word and flamboyant gesture rather than criticising them. In the 1982 World Cup finals in Spain, Brazil opened against Russia in Seville, deploying a midfield of tremendous talent. Against the Russians, Socrates was ubiquitous and outstanding, now in the firing line, now unselfishly dropping deep to cover for the attacking left back, Junior. After 75 minutes, he struck the equaliser with a fulminating right-footed shot and Brazil went on to win 2-1. In their next match, won 4-1 against a Scotland team which, like Russia, had actually taken the lead, Socrates neatly set up Brazil’s fourth goal for his fellow midfielder, Falcao. In a second-round group match that his team, in Barcelona, was very unlucky to lose to Italy, Socrates scored another spectacular goal. Receiving a perfectly angled pass from Zico, he somehow found a gap between Italy’s goalkeeper, Dino Zoff, and the near post, a shot of tremendous power which found its billet. But Brazil, which needed only a draw to reach the semi-finals, lost 3-2 and went out in one of the most dramatic games in the history of the tournament. There had been suggestions that Socrates would cut short his playing career, but he was still in the Brazilian team, now captained by Edinho, for the 1986 World Cup in MexiCo The heroes of midfield, however, Socrates somewhat wearily among them, were largely tired or injured and there were ructions at the training camp. In Guadalajara, against Spain, Socrates scored another World Cup goal, though this one looked offside, after the centre forward, Careca, had shot against the bar. That came eight minutes from the end and gave Brazil a 1-0 victory. Brazil improved: Northern Ireland were swept aside 3-0 and, again in Guadalajara, Socrates was for once deputed to take a penalty from which he duly scored, in a 4-0 victory against Poland. Should he have taken the vital penalty, on the same ground, in the quarter-final against France? But Zico took it and missed, and Brazil were eliminated on penalties, with Socrates one of the non-scorers. At the time, Socrates struck me as “strolling about the field in samba rhythm - never hurried, always inventive, occasionally breaking into a brisk trot”. It was his last World Cup match, and he went out with the flourish of having two headers saved by the French goalkeeper, Joel Bats. Though he had once said, in 1981, that he would never go to play in Italy for money, Socrates did, in fact, join Fiorentina in the 1984-85 season. The 1986-87 season saw him back in Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, playing for Flamengo, and from there he went to Santos, back in the Sao Paulo state league, in 1988-89. There was also a 12-minute cameo appearance with Garforth Town, in the UK, against Tadcaster Albion in a Northern League match in 2004, but he was clearly a decade or so too old to play. The whole thing smacked of a publicity stunt. Socrates’s younger brother, Rai, was a Brazilian international midfielder and a member of the Brazil squad that won the 1994 World Cup. Socrates’ wife and six children survive him. Gavin McOwan writes: Socrates was one of the very few qualified medical doctors to play the game at the very highest level, captaining Brazil in the 1982 World Cup, widely recognised as one of the best teams (along with Hungary in 1954 and Holland in 1974) never to win the tournament. His style of play was unmistakable; elegant and effortless almost to the point of nonchalance, and with a penchant for the back-heel that prompted Pele to remark that Socrates played better going backwards than most footballers going forward. He also possessed an intellect that complemented his name. I was lucky enough to interview “The Doctor” in 2002 and was awed by his wisdom and good humour - not to mention the number of beers he could knock back. He was clearly one of football’s great sages, but also held court on everything from his surreal meeting in the Libyan desert with Colonel Gaddafi (who urged Socrates to run for Brazilian president) to his love of Che Guevara. But for Brazilians who lived through the 21 years of the country’s military dictatorship, Socrates will also be remembered as a social activist and campaigner for democracy, both within the game and on the wider political stage.