Sven-Göran Eriksson: Forever one of us!

Sven-Göran Eriksson, the former coach who led SL Benfica for five seasons (1982/83 and 1983/84, and 1989/90 to 1991/92), passed away this Monday, August 26. Here are some tributes to one of the most emblematic coaches in the Club's history...

FERNANDO SEARA

“In April, when I met him – we met when he first played for our beloved Benfica in 1982 – he said to me, in his Portuguese I was learning, 'I like to see you'. We hugged and I had the feeling that he wouldn't last long, being aware of the life he had lived and of two things: he was a revolutionary in Portuguese football and in Benfica football. We realized with the players he coached that he revolutionized training, methodology, the tactical and technical aspects, but above all, the way he related to the player. I heard it from so many people. We had some exciting moments with him. The Benfica- Marseille moment [in the Europa League 2023/24], particularly at half-time, will go down in our personal memory, and in Benfica's memory, as we were able to pay tribute to him in his lifetime. He lived his life, but, being honored in life, I can tell everyone that he felt that, and it cherished him and strengthened him in that immense heart, which is the heart of a football man.”

Listen to Fernando Seara

TONI

“It is, obviously, an hour of pain for the entire Benfica family. When Eriksson said a few months ago that he didn't have much time left, he showed a lot of strength and courage in making that statement. Fortunately, we all had the opportunity to say goodbye to him while he was still alive, the Benfica fans, his former players and directors. It was a moment they will remember, because they had that opportunity. Eriksson's departure is that pain, pain deep down, but also nostalgia for someone who left a very important legacy, not only at Benfica, but also in his time in Portuguese football. It was remarkable for the way he was in sport, in football and also for the greatness of character he showed here and everywhere he went. Today is a day of deep sadness for all who love football, for all who love Benfica. I think Eriksson was the consensus of all the colors in Portugal. So it's a day of deep sadness, but also of immense nostalgia for someone who has marked us. Since 1982 we've had a relationship that has cemented itself into a great friendship every day.”

Listen to Toni

HUMBERTO COELHO

“It's sad news, but I think we all expected it. The tribute he received [at the Estádio da Luz] was extraordinary from the whole Benfica family. It showed that, in fact, these were the last times he could live. I think it shows what he was, a person with good principles and, essentially, from a professional point of view, he was an extraordinary coach. He arrived and brought a new training methodology to Benfica that pleased all the players. He managed the dressing room, the team and the bench very well. He was an affable, respectful person, with no problems. We formed a very close friendship that will last. I miss him enormously, but there's also the memory of what he did that really helped me and the team to achieve the goals that a great team like Benfica has.”

Listen to Humberto Coelho

RUI ÁGUAS

“What we decided to do must have been good for him, to take away that heaviness of death, to speak out and go out into public and tell his story. I think it softened the moment, if that's possible, that we knew was coming. We're talking about a very special person, very remarkable, very different. At the time, he made all the difference in terms of tactics, training, but above all, for me, in the attitude he had, the openness he allowed and the sharing. I was one of the player captains at the time and he had no problem calling me up and asking my opinion. It was a very special closeness. Afterwards, he was always calm, hardly ever upset and we really appreciated that.”

Listen to Rui Águas

SHÉU HAN

“Today is a very sad day. We've just lost someone who made a very significant change to the players of my time and, eventually, to Portuguese football. From the 1980s onwards, Portuguese football, Portuguese players and the Portuguese public had a different vision of what it was and what it would be in the coming decades. That's a very striking feature for all of us. Naturally, before anything else, we had to think about the game... and the game, after all, was so simple. The training methodology was so easy to assimilate. I remember when we were preparing a training session, suggesting a place to do a certain type of training, he would say 'I'm a football coach, I'm not an athletics coach', and that immediately set the tone, let's say, for what was to come. There was always a very clear identification of what it was going to be from that moment on.”

Listen to Shéu Han

ANTÓNIO BASTOS LOPES

“We've lost a gentleman, not just at Benfica, but worldwide. He managed to turn around an almost thirty-year-old team and change the training methods. So much so that at an age when players start to distrust everything and everyone, we soon realized that this was the way to go. That he was going to do new things, as he brought in, explained to us and executed so that we could adapt in such a way as to be as successful as he was. It's very sad for me, as it was when he came to say goodbye to the Estádio da Luz. It was sad for him, but it was also sad for us. We all got goose bumps being with someone who had the strength to say he was going to die and to come and say goodbye to us. So much so that we feel his departure even more today.”

Listen to António Bastos Lopes

JOSÉ LUÍS

“It's always very sad news. Not just for the coach, but for the extraordinary human being. Eriksson was a very special coach. For the players, for Benfica and for the fans. He left a lot behind. He helped the players, he cared about them. He taught and explained well. We're very grateful to the person and coach that Eriksson was. I remember everything Eriksson said to me as if it were today. The things he did in training and, above all, how he helped and wanted to help the human being and the athlete. He will always be one of the best coaches to have come through world football. [Tribute paid by the club in April 2024] I was very pleased to his come to Benfica. The great moments that we athletes spent with this extraordinary human being will remain forever.”

Listen to José Luís

ÁLVARO MAGALHÃES

“It's devastating news. We knew he was going through a very difficult illness. But we always hope that things will go well and last longer. Eriksson, as well as being part of Benfica's history, will be missed. He will be greatly missed by all those who worked with him, players, directors and also the Benfica fans, who saw him put a team on the pitch that always wanted to win. A human being of excellence. Always concerned about his players, not only in training but also in his personal life. He is the coach who revolutionized Portuguese football. The man who taught us and helped us to become better is gone. A friend of excellence has gone. We had a family relationship. He was very simple, with a fantastic upbringing. He created a winning mentality, more ambitious, in that Benfica team. He will go down in the history of Benfica and world football because he was a different person.”

Listen to Álvaro Magalhães

CARLOS MANUEL

“It's a particularly tough time for all of us. Not just for Benfica, but for the whole of Portuguese football. We're dealing with a man who changed Portuguese football through his way of being, his communication and his character. We all have to be a little ' ill' for Sven. He was a fantastic man and when he arrived, he completely changed our minds. In addition to his way of being, his methods were innovative for all of us. Even the older ones felt much younger because of the way Sven worked. Affable, with very good behavior management, always with a word for each player, the dialogue was constant. He was always the same, never avoided dialogue, and quickly wanted to learn our Portuguese. Above all, his way of being, knowing how to manage the group, the players, those who didn't play. Sven was fantastic in that respect. In April, when he was here, it was fantastic, knowing that he had an incurable disease and could leave at any time, he never stopped being cheerful, giving us some advice for life. We didn't expect anything else from this great man. He's a man we can't forget.”

Listen to Carlos Manuel

CARLOS PEREIRA

“Sven-Göran Eriksson was a special person. In 1982 the average age of the squad was around 30 and they were great players, but they were from a second stage of European football because they never managed to win European titles. With Sven-Göran Eriksson the players didn't improve from a technical or physical point of view, they improved from the point of view of how they faced pressure, how they faced life and people. That was the real revolution. For Eriksson, being a professional was much more than playing football, getting on the pitch, playing the game and leaving the pitch. Being a player was much more than that. And that generation of players not only learned that lesson, but also carried it on to other generations.”

Listen to Carlos Pereira

JOÃO ALVES

“Eriksson brought new ideas to Portugal and Benfica. In tactical terms, with respect to the extra-football, to what goes beyond the four lines, that hour and a half. In the UEFA Cup final [1983], the training camp we did was at lunchtime, and we all went to the hotel for lunch. Always from the point of view of maximum responsibility, maximum freedom. He managed to impose his ideas. We came out with a team that was very strong in attack, defended very well, tactically disciplined, scored a lot of goals, dominant, and had a fantastic season. Coach Eriksson was one of the most important coaches of my career.”

Listen to João Alves

DANIEL KENEDY

“It's a sad day. Someone very important for world football has gone, very important for Benfica. He marked a very strong generation. I'm very grateful to him because, as I've always said, when I was 17 he was the coach who got me into the first team. I remember his words before he left: “You were the best young player I've ever seen”. That marked me for the rest of my life and are words that will mark me forever. I recently had the chance to be at the Estádio da Luz and see him and he remembered my name. These are things that will stay with me, memories of this great man, this great coach.”

Listen to Daniel Kenedy

ANTÓNIO VELOSO

“He was my first coach when I arrived at Benfica. I was a starter right away, thanks to him. He told me, you're going to play on the right or the left. He put me on the left, and that's where I played until he left. He was a very friendly coach, always attentive to everything. His way of training and talking to the players was very friendly. Without shouting. He was always a coach that both I and my colleagues liked. I don't think anyone had any complaints. Everything he said, we followed strictly. We had respect for him, just as he had for us. He was always positive in every way.”

Listen to António Veloso

SILVINO

“The death of our great champion, Eriksson... A great man. One of the best coaches I've ever had. I can never forget the advice he gave me as a goalkeeper. A great man. A great professional and one of the best coaches in the world.”

Listen to Silvino