Brazilian football legend Pele, not long out of the hospital after surgery to remove a tumour, told fans on Wednesday to start celebrating his life because he was getting “closer to the goal”.

“I suggest you start to catch your breath to celebrate with me, because with each passing day I get closer to the goal,” Pele wrote on Twitter.

He did not give any details, but the former Brazil, Santos and New York Cosmos player, who will turn 81 on Saturday, has been in poor health for some time.

He is undergoing chemotherapy following September’s tumour surgery.

That ailment came after hip and kidney problems as well as, what his son Edinho last year said was, a bout with depression, something Pele later denied.

Widely considered to be one the greatest players of all time, Pele is the only footballer to hold three World Cup winners’ medals, lifting the trophy with Brazil in 1958, 1962 and 1970. He scored more than 1,000 goals in a glittering career and transcended sport to become one of the most recognisable faces on the planet.

He even visited Calcutta with Cosmos for an exhibition match against Mohun Bagan. The tie, played at the Eden Gardens on September 24, 1977, ended 2-2.

Last week Pele had said he was feeling “better” and joked that he can’t wait to get back to playing the beautiful game, just days after leaving hospital. “Thanks to God, I’m better, I’m even ready to play on Sunday,” he had joked.

“In all seriousness, thank you for everything, thank you to everyone that has sent me hugs and given me strength,” he had added in a video message published on the Instagram accounts of two of his children.

Last week, India football captain Sunil Chhetri went past Pele’s 77-goal mark in international football during the SAFF Championships in Male. Asked about him overtaking the legend, Chhetri had said: “Anybody who knows football will tell you there is no comparison whatsoever… he was a dynamic and powerful footballer.”