Lisbon: Portugal’s most celebrated former player Eusebio was released from hospital on Thursday, four days after surgery on his cartoid arteries.

The operation successfully unblocked the arteries that carry blood to the brain, diminishing the risk of the 65-year-old having a stroke.

“I want to thank all those that have supported me, but I also have to thank the doctor who operated on me because of the way I was treated,” Eusebio said.

The surgery took place at Benfica’s new hospital, about 500 metres from the club’s Stadium of Light where the Mozambique-born “Black Panther” thrilled crowds in the 1960s and 1970s. (Reuters)