The striker has played in the Euros and the Premier League, but has taken a different path since hanging up his boots.
During his football career, Hugo Porfirio reached great heights for club and country. His job these days couldn’t be more different.
The Portugal international played for his country at Euro 96 after an impressive season in Leiria, earning a loan move to West Ham United for the following season. He spent just one year under Harry Redknapp in East London, but it was enough to earn him a cult following among some members of the fan base.
Porfirio is now 53 and long retired, finishing his career with Al Nassr more than a decade before compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo joined the Saudi club. After hanging up his boots, he embarked on a new career as an Uber driver in Portugal, with the impressive Andre Ramalho spotting the former international and sharing the news.
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“We had a ten-minute walk, but we were late and tired, so we decided to call Uber,” Ramalho said, according to TalkSPORT. “The guy driving the car amazed us. How could he do something so ordinary?
“This is the guy who played at Euro 96 and played with Rui Costa, Luis Figo and Vitor Baia. He’s the best guy of all time and a great guy too.
“He also drove very well. Footballers are not usually known for being good drivers!”
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Porfirio started his career at Sporting CP in his homeland and also played for clubs such as Racing Santander, Benfica and Nottingham Forest. He won three caps for Portugal, made his debut against Ireland in the Euro 96 play-off and shared a pitch with Luis Figo and Rui Costa at the tournament.
He moved into coaching after his retirement, serving as No. 2 to former Portugal teammate Ricardo Sa Pinto at Sporting. In the 2011/12 season, the Lisbon club lost to Marcelo Bielsa’s “Athletic Club” and reached the semi-finals of the Europa League with a couple.
West Ham finished 14th in the Premier League in Porfirio’s one season at the club. The Portuguese scored against Blackburn and Chelsea as Redknapp’s side survived after John Hartson and Paul Kitson fired them to safety in mid-season.
Porfirio is one of 12 Portuguese players to have appeared for West Ham during their Premier League spell. Luis Boa Morte has made the most appearances in ten games, while the most recent appearance for the club is the recently departed Mateus Fernandes.