Goalkeeper Vozinha, from the Cape Verde national team, made seven saves in the draw against Spain, last Monday (15), and secured the African country’s first point in the World Cup.
The archer’s performance gained prominence in the international press, with at least four difficult saves. At 40 years old and with the lowest market value on the team, Vozinha went from 50 thousand followers on Instagram to more than 10 million the day after the game.
Past editions of the FIFA World Cup also featured individual performances that surprised fans during the group stage of the tournament.
In 2010, the opening game of the South African Cup was marked by left winger Siphiwe Tshabalala’s goal for the hosts, in a 1-1 draw against Mexico.
Now retired, the striker won the fans’ favor with his celebratory dance after his cross shot that hit the left corner of the Mexican goal.
In the following games, the South Africans lost to Uruguay and beat France. They ended the group stage with the same score as Mexico. However, they were disqualified due to goal difference.
Those who watched Ecuador’s games in the 2014 World Cup only saw goals from one player: Enner Valencia. The striker, 24 years old at the time, ended the group stage of the tournament based in Brazil with three goals scored — against Switzerland and Honduras.
In 2026, Valencia will compete in the FIFA World Cup for the third time and is the Ecuadorian team’s all-time top scorer.
The Russian Cup in 2018 also had unexpected performances. The first, from a goalkeeper, contributed to eliminating Germany in the group stage. Jo Hyeon-woo, from South Korea, scored the goal in the Asian team’s 2-0 victory against the four-time champion team of Manuel Neuer, Toni Kroos and Marco Reus.
The other came from the hosts. Left winger Denis Cheryshev, at the time at Villarreal in Spain, scored three goals in the group stage — against Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The Russian striker also scored a great goal in the 2-2 draw with Croatia in the quarter-finals. Russia ended up eliminated on penalties.
In the next rounds of the 2026 World Cup, Cape Verde will face the teams of Uruguay and Saudi Arabia, who drew 1-1 last Monday. The four teams in group H have one point each.
