Vozinha arrives in Chile to sign deal with Colo-Colo

Cape Verde’s World Cup hero Vozinha, who became a social media sensation overnight after his impressive performance in the goalkeeping department, has arrived in Chile to join Colo-Colo.

Vozinha, 40, is set to sign a six-month deal with the possibility of a one-year extension on Monday after undergoing a medical and he will start training on Tuesday.

According to Chilean media, the star goalkeeper was likely to make his debut on August 16, against O'Higgins, as Colo-Colo look to maintain their healthy lead at the head of the Chilean Premier Division.

Vozinha's performance helped Cape Verde to reach the last 32 after making it to the World Cup for the first time in their history. The small African island nation suffered a narrow loss to Argentina in their final game of the tournament.

They held eventual winners Spain and twice world champions Uruguay to draws in the group stage, and Vozinha played a major role in his country's success at the global tournament.

Vozinha’s Instagram account had around 50,000 followers, which increased to around 17.4 million after his heroics against Spain in the first week of the tournament in June.

Colo-Colo were granted permission on Friday for Vozinha, whose real name is Josimar Jose Evore Dias, to use his footballing nickname on his shirt despite regulations in the South American country prohibiting it.

The possibility he might be banned from using the name “Vozinha” on his shirt proved less contentious than originally thought, however, with other Chilean clubs agreeing to Colo-Colo's request.

The nickname Vozinha, which means “little grandmother” in Portuguese, was given by the older kids when he was a boy and would cry after losing games of street football and storm home to his grandparents, with whom he lived.