Former Benfica midfielder Mario Coluna has died at the age of 78.

The Portuguese made 677 appearances over 17 seasons for the Lisbon giants between 1954 and 1970, scoring 150 goals and helping them to win two European Cups, 10 Portuguese league titles and six domestic trophies.

Coluna passed away in his native Mozambique having been hospitalised since Sunday with a pulmonary infection, and Benfica president Luis Filipe Vieira paid tribute to the former club great.

"It is not easy to say goodbye to someone whose life was among the greatest," Vieira told the club's official website.

"Someone whose life path is unique and whose legacy will endure far beyond him. It is said that we are born equal. Untrue! Coluna was born different, for the better, much better. He was and will always be a football genius who magnified football and projected Sport Lisboa e Benfica to a global dimension.

"Coluna will always be with us. He will be present in our days because he earned that right, with his example and achievements."

Coluna, who earned 57 caps for Portugal, is the second Benfica veteran to pass away this year, following Eusebio's death in January.