The night that Brazilian legend Pele lit up Villa Park as the floodlights failed

It was on February 21 1972 that football elite played at Aston Villa's Villa Park stadium

It will be a disappointment to claret and blue diehards, but that one magical evening when the greatest footballer the world has ever seen graced Villa Park is somewhat lost on the legend himself.

The late great Pele’s recollection of the night Aston Villa put Santos to the sword is, at best, hazy. At worst, non-existent.

That’s despite floodlights failing.

It was on February 21 1972.

The Brazilian genius, a player who single-handedly made soccer sexy through his sublime Samba skills, paused while rifling through mental filing cabinets.

“I remember a little bit about the game,” he confessed. “Santos used to travel all around the world.

“We’d play two, three games a year ‎in England and then also in Germany, Italy...”

For the 54,500 fans present it was a chance to witness greatness.

And for the benefit of the three-time World Cup winner, Villa, then in the Third Division, emerged 2-1 victors, thanks to goals from Pat McMahon and Ray Graydon.

The Birmingham Post’s Jeff Farmer wrote: “The dazzling skills of Pele lit-up Villa Park. Pele responded to the magnificent crowd with a glittering display of his supreme talent.”

“Pele eased the pressure on Santos by dropping deep to stroke passes from the midfield mud with the touch and vision only he possesses.

“Suddenly it didn’t matter that Villa’s generator was managing to power only three of the floodlight pylons, Pele was making up for the other.

“Pele made his first real goal threat after 23 minutes and it took a defiant save from Jimmy Cumbes to keep him out.”

A national newspaper reporter wrote: “In the first half Pele did some magnificent things while managing to look as if he was not really trying.

“After McMahon’s opener, Pele started. Some of his passes, flicks with the inside and outside of both feet, defied logic.

“Two through passes were perfection and more committed forwards than his own might have scored from them.

“As the half wore on he ran with the ball, feinting, dipping his shoulder and beating opponents with improbable ease.”