Rio De Janeiro, June 23 (IANS) Brazilian football club Flamengo on Tuesday mourned the death of its former player and coach Luis Carlos Nunes da Silva at the age of 77.

“Carlinhos”, as he was popularly known, was nicknamed “The Violin”, due to his “elegant football and thin voice”, Xinhua news agency reported.

The midfielder, who played for Flamengo in the 1950s and 60s, was never once expelled from a game, earning the Belfort Duarte Trophy for fair play from the Brazilian Football Federation.

Carlinhos retired play in 1970, and was replaced by Zico, who went on to become the idol of Brazil’s favourite team.

Under his leadership as coach, Flamengo won the national title from 1987 to 1992, the Mercosur Cup in 1999, and the local Rio championships in 1991, 1999 and 2000.

In 2011, the club unveiled a bust in his honour, calling the site “Plaza Carlinhos”.