Cristiano Ronaldo has paid tribute to his coach, Aurélio da Silva Pereira who first discovered his talent following the coach's death.
The coach, Aurélio passed away on Tuesday, April 8 at the age of 77.
He started a training and scouting program at Sporting Lisbon in 1988 and helped train and guide many famous Portuguese footballers, including Ronaldo, Luís Figo, Nani and Ricardo Quaresma.
Ronaldo took to his Instagram account and shared a picture of himself with his coach, Aurélio, along with caption that read, "One of the greatest symbols of world training has left us, but his legacy will live on forever."
CR7 added, “I will never stop being grateful for everything he did for me and for so many other players. Until forever, Mr. Aurelio, thank you for everything. Rest in peace."
Meanwhile, the Portuguese Football Federation said in a statement, "The death of Aurelio Pereira represents an irreparable loss for Portuguese Football.”
The statement added, “For history, in addition to the enormous legacy built by the man who discovered some of the best players in our history, there will be a kind person, of fine treatment and who always defended our talent."
Pereira played major role in Portugal's success in the Euro 2016 tournament because he helped discover 10 of the players on the winning team.
In recognition of his work, he was awarded the Medal of Sporting Merit by the City of Lisbon in 2017 and in 2018 UEFA honored him with the Order of Merit for his significant contribution to the growth of football in Portugal and Europe.
