The forward played at the Euros and in the Premier League but has gone down a different route since hanging up his boots

During his football career, Hugo Porfirio reached great heights for club and country. These days, though, his work couldn't be much more different.

The Portugal international played for his country at Euro 96 after an impressive season at Leiria and earned a loan to West Ham United for the following season. He only spent one year under Harry Redknapp in East London but did enough to earn a cult following among some members of the fanbase.

Porfirio is now 53 and long retired, having ended his career with Al Nassr more than a decade before compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo joined the Saudi club. Since hanging up his boots he has begun a new career as an Uber driver back in Portugal, with influencer Andre Ramalho spotting the former international and sharing the news.

“We had a ten-minute walk to make, but we were late and tired, so decided to call an Uber," Ramalho said, per talkSPORT. “We were amazed by the guy driving the car. How could he be doing something so ordinary?

“This is the fella who played at Euro 96, and played alongside Rui Costa, Luis Figo and Vitor Baia. He is the coolest guy of all time, and a great bloke as well.

“He also drove very well. Footballers aren’t usually known as good drivers!”

Make sure you never miss the latest West Ham news and opinion by making Football London one of your Google preferred sources.

Porfirio began his career at Sporting CP in his homeland, also playing for clubs including Racing Santander, Benfica and Nottingham Forest. He won three caps for the Portuguese national team, making his debut against Ireland in a Euro 96 knockout game and sharing a pitch with Luis Figo and Rui Costa at the tournament proper.

He moved into coaching after his retirement, serving as No.2 to his former Portugal team-mate Ricardo Sa Pinto at Sporting. The Lisbon club reached the semi-finals of the Europa League with the pair in the dugout in 2011/12, losing to Marcelo Bielsa's Athletic Club.

West Ham finished 14th in the Premier League in Porfirio's one season at the club. The Portuguese scored against Blackburn and Chelsea, with Redknapp's team surviving after mid-season arrivals John Hartson and Paul Kitson fired them to safety.

Porfirio is one of 12 Portuguese players to turn out for West Ham during their time in the Premier League. Luis Boa Morte made the most appearances of the dozen, while the last to feature for the club was the recently-departed Mateus Fernandes.