The Brazilian footballer Jair Da Rosa Pinto, "Jair" - as he was always known - who has died from a lung infection aged 84, was part of the dazzling inside-forward trio that seemed sure to win Brazil the world cup which it staged in 1950. With Zizinho at inside-right and Ademir at centre-forward, the three played football that was a mesmerising amalgam of pace, technique, invention and deadly finishing. Such was the irresistible brilliance of Brazil's attack that a leading Italian journalist headlined his article, Come Resistere? (How to resist?).
Brazil opened the tournament in the huge Maracana Stadium with an easy 4-0 victory over Mexico. Jair scored the second goal, playing, at inside-left and inside-right, either side of the centre-forward, Baltazar.
He played no part in the subsequent match, a 2-2 draw against Switzerland in Sao Paulo. Thus it was only in the third game, a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Yugoslavia in Rio, that the trio took the field.
In the first second-round match, Brazil met Sweden in Rio, and the floodgates opened. In the 19th minute, Ademir's speculative shot gave Brazil the lead, and he, Zizinho and Jair cut the Swedish defence to pieces. Jair didn't score, but the combination of the trio was of breathtaking intricacy. With Sweden wilting in the heat, they added four more goals to their first-half three, running out 7-1 winners. Next came Spain and another half dozen goals, Jair getting two of them.
The third, decisive game, in which a draw would be sufficient to make them world champions, came against Uruguay. Thanks to the half-baked nature of the competition, this, though in every true respect a cup final, was nothing of the sort. Fifa had decreed that the tournament's winner - for the first and only time - would be the team that amassed the most points.
Uruguay had already benefited from lopsided organisation, qualifying from the first round after winning a single game 8-0 against feeble Bolivia. But it was largely believed they had no chance against such a brilliant Brazil. The belief was not shared by the Brazilian manager, Flavio Costa, who pointed out that "the Uruguayan team has always troubled the slumbers of Brazilian footballers. I'm afraid that my players will take the field on Sunday as though they already had the championship shield sewn on their jerseys."
At first it seemed such confidence might be justified. Zizinho, Ademir and Jair repeatedly cut through the Uruguayan defence, with Jair, the salient attacker, hitting the post. Two minutes after half time, the Brazilian right-winger Friaca at last gave his team the lead, to tumultuous applause from the 200,000. Jair was tiring. Schiaffino equalised and Ghiggia scored the astonishing winner.
"I'll take that loss to my grave," Jair told told a Brazilian newspaper. "And then I'll ask God why we gave away the greatest opportunity to win a world cup."
Jair made the rounds of Brazilian clubs, playing for Flamengo and Vasco da Gama of Rio, Santos, the club which would be made famous by Pele, then the two Sao Paulo clubs, Sao Paolo and Palmeiras.
The Italians categorised Jair as un fronzoliere (slingshot man), although whether this referred to his shooting or to the defence-splitting accuracy of his passing remains obscure. What is beyond dispute is that his technique, his ball control, like that of the other members of the famous trio, was remarkable. Playing a year after that catastrophic world cup for Palmeiras against Nice in a Sao Paulo tournament, he was eulogised as "a star, capable of constructing and directing the best attacking actions".
He played until the age of 43. On retiring, he managed Santos - where he was said to have nurtured the young Pele - Sao Paulo and Fluminense.
· He and his wife, Maria Celia, had two sons. Jair da Rosa Pinto, footballer, born 1921; died July 28 2005