Rio de Janeiro, Jan 21 (IANS): Former Brazil football team chief coach Carlos Alberto Silva has died at the age of 77, his former club Guarani said.
Silva died at his home in the southeastern Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte, Guarani said on the club's website on Friday. The cause of his death was not revealed, but media reports said he was recovering from heart surgery, reports Xinhua.
"Guarani is in mourning and expresses its solidarity with all the friends and relatives of the eternal commander, Carlos Alberto Silva," the Campinas-based club said. "Champions never die. Rest in peace, master."
In a coaching career that spanned four decades, Silva led Brazil in 1987 and 1988, guiding the team to the Pan American title in his first year.
He rose to prominence by winning the Brazilian Serie A championship with Guarani in 1978. He returned to coach the club on five separate occasions, the most recent of which ended in 2002.
In 1993, he was responsible for giving a teenage Ronaldo his Brazilian Serie A debut with Cruzeiro.
Silva was also in charge of Porto's 1992 and 1993 Portuguese Primeira Liga titles and had a short spell as manager of Spain's Deportivo La Coruna.
He retired from coaching in 2005 after a brief spell with Atletico Mineiro.