Roberto Lopes set to start Spain Cape Verde World Cup match

Roberto Lopes is expected to start for spain cape verde against Spain on Monday in Group H in Atlanta, a World Cup debut that links a former Dublin bank worker to Cape Verde's first appearance at the tournament. The 33-year-old defender was approached through social media after Rui Aguas learned his father, Carlos, was from Cape Verde.

LinkedIn and Carlos Lopes

Lopes said he first brushed off Aguas' LinkedIn message. “I thought it was a spam message and I took no notice of it,” he said, before a follow-up came about nine months later: “Hi Roberto, have you had a chance to consider what I said to you?”

He said he copied the invitation into Google Translate after Aguas asked, “We're looking at getting new players into the Cape Verde squad and would you be interested in declaring for Cape Verde?” Lopes answered, “I was absolutely buzzing with that. I was like, 'Yep, 100% I'd love to be a part of the squad'.”

Shamrock Rovers and 2017

Before international football, Lopes was a newly qualified mortgage adviser 10 years ago and said, “I was not enjoying the work,” while still living and working in the Republic of Ireland. In 2017, Shamrock Rovers offered him a chance to leave his day job and become a full-time footballer after he had played part-time for Bohemians in the League of Ireland.

He joined Rovers full-time that year and still plays for the club. His first Cape Verde appearances came in 2019, and he has been a regular starter for the past 7 years.

Atlanta against Spain

Cape Verde are a nation of 10 islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the west coast of Africa, and this is their first World Cup. Lopes said the stage carries the weight he once imagined as a young player: “From when I was a young child, and I imagine every aspiring footballer when they were young, they wanted to play at the highest level possible and, for me, it doesn't go any further than the World Cup”.

Days after helping Cape Verde qualify, Lopes became a father for the first time when Leah gave birth to the couple's son, Diego. His place in the lineup leaves Shamrock Rovers represented on one of football's biggest stages while Cape Verde open against Spain in Group H at 17:00 BST.