In Chile, where Colo-Colo welcomed Vozinha with the glow of a goalkeeper fresh from Cape Verde’s World Cup adventure, the past fortnight has brought a sharper kind of attention. Josimar José Evora Dias, better known as Vozinha, has endured costly moments in each of his two recent international appearances, while also speaking openly about the disruption fame has brought to his life.
The news from the club
The Cape Verde international said that the aftermath of the World Cup has taken away much of his private life. “I have lost my peace and quiet,” he said, adding that he no longer has the privacy he once enjoyed.
His profile rose rapidly after the tournament: millions of new Instagram followers arrived, commercial brands made him a public face, and his move to Colo-Colo was greeted with extraordinary enthusiasm. Yet his first weeks in Santiago have been less secure on the field. He has started only two of Colo-Colo’s six league matches and has conceded once.
Despite that limited club role, newly appointed Cape Verde coach Humberto Bettencourt selected him for the African Cup of Nations qualifying matches. Cape Verde have not yet rediscovered the momentum and results that carried them to the World Cup.
A difficult qualifying window for Cape Verde
The campaign opened with a 3-1 defeat to Mali. Cape Verde were still in touching distance at 2-1, but Vozinha misjudged a move off his line and allowed Nene to collect possession and score the decisive third goal.
The second match, against Rwanda, initially appeared to offer a reset. Benchimol put Cape Verde ahead in the 40th minute, only for Rwanda to level before the interval. Another error from Vozinha changed the contest after the break: in the 52nd minute, an otherwise harmless cross dropped into danger after the goalkeeper miscalculated inside his six-yard area, and Tatou turned it into Rwanda’s winning goal.
The two incidents have intensified scrutiny around a player who was once listed among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees. For Vozinha, the challenge now is to regain the authority that made him one of Cape Verde’s defining figures on the World Cup stage, while establishing himself more firmly at Colo-Colo.
