A 40-year-old goalkeeper just made his World Cup debut, and let's just say Spain is probably still wondering what happened. Vozinha, the Cape Verde keeper, spent four decades waiting for this moment. He made it count.
On Monday, Vozinha pulled off seven saves, single-handedly holding Spain's notoriously powerful team to a 0-0 draw. Spain, the 2010 World Cup champion and a favorite this year, controlled the ball, took 27 shots, and looked increasingly bewildered. Even their young phenom, Lamine Yamal, couldn't get the ball past the man whose nickname means "little grandmother."
When the final whistle blew, Vozinha crumpled to the ground near his net, tears streaming down his face before his teammates piled on. Cape Verde, playing its first-ever World Cup match, just snatched a point from one of the giants. Let that sink in.
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Vozinha was visibly emotional, thinking of his loved ones who couldn't be there. His grandparents, who raised him, passed away a few years ago. His mother couldn't get a U.S. visa in time. See, Cape Verde is one of 50 countries where citizens face a bond requirement of up to $15,000 for a U.S. visa, a rule that was only partially suspended for World Cup ticket-holders last month. For many, it was too late.
His performance was the culmination of a career that didn't even go pro until he was 25. He bounced around clubs in Angola, Moldova, Cyprus, Slovakia, and Portugal. He's currently in the Portuguese second division. He joined the national team in 2012, and admits he nearly quit multiple times.
"I work all my life for this, for this moment, for this dream," Vozinha said. "A lot of generations in the past (dreamed of) this day but they did not achieve. And now the dream comes true."
His teammates, who affectionately tease him about his age, call him a "big legend." Defender Steven Moreira said Vozinha had a "crazy game" and proved that age is, indeed, just a number. The world agreed. Vozinha's Instagram following exploded from 50,000 to over 2.4 million in mere hours after the match.
Defender Pico Lopes noted that Vozinha is a strict taskmaster in practice, always pushing them to be better. And sometimes, you just need a "little grandmother" to show you how it's done.
