Recently felt like making some World Cup player infographics for fun. Big Portugal fans in my neighbourhood football club, so figured why not start there? Total amateur hour from me – didn’t even check if World Cup is happening this year.
The Idea & Early Struggle
Grabbed my laptop around 10 AM, planning to list active players with stats. First problem hit me: I blanked on half the squad. Knew Cristiano for sure, then Bernardo Silva… but after that? Mind went foggy like my coffee. Typed “Portugal national team players” into search, found old 2022 lists. Thought I’d just update it myself like some football expert.
- Cristiano Ronaldo? Obvious striker pick. Wrote “attacker” next to his name.
- Bernardo Silva? Manchester City guy plays everywhere. Scribbled “wizard” instead of position.
- Bruno Fernandes? Remembered he’s always yelling at referees. Put “captain??” as note.
My spreadsheet looked pathetic already. Called my nephew who watches every game for help. He laughed hard: “You forgot João Félix AND Leão? And Bruno isn’t captain, dummy!” Felt like an idiot. Copied names he listed onto crumpled paper.
Mid-Day Chaos & Shortcuts
Tried watching YouTube highlight reels during lunch. Wife yelled from kitchen “Vacuum cleaner broke!” while I rewound Diogo Costa saves. Got distracted fixing that mess for an hour. Back at laptop, realised I mixed up Dalot and Cancelo’s positions. Highlight videos showed both overlapping like crazy on right side.
Panicked around 3 PM. Made random groupings:
- Goal Guys: Costa and Patricio
- Old Guard: Pepe & Cristiano
- New Kids: Gonçalo Ramos, António Silva
- Captain Chaos: Bruno Fernandes
Took blurry phone photos of my scribbles pretending it was “research material.” Wife asked why defender Rúben Dias wasn’t in any group. Had quietly skipped him earlier.
The “Finished” Disaster
Around sunset, slapped things together:
- Cristiano: Goal machine forever
- Bruno: Angry playmaker
- Silvas: Both named Silva, both dribbly
- Rafa Leão: Fast but confusing
Total garbage analysis. Realised João Palhinha exists only after reading tweets during dinner. Pretended it was on purpose, like “let’s focus on stars today” – lazy excuse. Published notes as-is while watching cooking show reruns. Zero proofreading. People probably think I’ve never seen a match.
Honestly? Just wanted to post something before bedtime. Whole thing was me googling, getting yelled at by family, and bullshitting positions.