Costinha

Francisco José Rodrigues da Costa, better known as Costinha, was born in Lisbon on 1 December 1974 to an Angolan father who had moved to the Portuguese capital in the 1960s. A defensive midfielder praised for his tackling, positioning, stamina, athleticism, and work rate, he played for clubs in Portugal, France, Russia, Spain, and Italy. With Porto, he won eight trophies, including the 2004 Champions League. He also earned over 50 caps for Portugal, appearing at one World Cup and two European Championships, and was part of the squad that reached the Euro 2004 final. After retiring, he managed Beira-Mar, Paços de Ferreira, Académica, and Nacional.

Costinha began his career in Portugal’s third division with Clube Oriental de Lisboa, A.D. Machico, and C.D. Nacional. A childhood Sporting CP fan, he initially signed a five-year contract with Valencia in 1997 but backed out when manager Jorge Valdano wanted to loan him to Villarreal. Through agent Jorge Mendes, he instead joined Monaco. After a tentative first season, he became a key player, helping the club win the 1999–2000 Ligue 1 title and featuring in the side that eliminated Manchester United from the Champions League in 1998 on away goals.

In May 2001, Costinha joined Porto on a five-year deal. He made his Primeira Liga debut on 12 August, aged nearly 27, and was sent off in a 1–0 loss away to Sporting. He became an instrumental part of Porto’s midfield as they won two consecutive league titles. On 9 March 2004, he scored against Manchester United in the Champions League round of 16, effectively knocking them out; Porto went on to win the competition, beating his former club Monaco 3–0 in the final.

Costinha remained a regular starter through the 2004–05 season. In May 2005, he was sold to Dynamo Moscow for €4 million, alongside teammates Maniche and Giourkas Seitaridis. The following month, he was suspended after an incident at a training camp in Israel. Unsettled, he moved to Atlético Madrid on a two-year contract for the 2006–07 season. Released in August 2007, he joined Atalanta in Serie A. There, he appeared very rarely—only one match in his first season—due to serious injuries and later because he was not considered fit to play, despite having the highest salary in the squad (€700,000 per year on a contract due to run until June 2010). The club tried to mutually terminate his deal and also attempted unsuccessfully to rescind it through the Italian Football League.

Costinha made his Portugal debut on 14 October 1998, coming on as a 67th-minute substitute for Rui Costa in a 3–0 home win over Slovakia in Euro 2000 qualifying. He was selected for the final tournament, where he scored an injury-time header against Romania in another 3–0 win. He also played at Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup. In the latter, he was one of four players sent off in the 1–0 round-of-16 victory over the Netherlands (the Battle of Nuremberg), receiving a second yellow card for handball. He finished his international career with 53 caps and two goals, having been rarely called up during Euro 2008 qualifying.

After leaving Atalanta by mutual consent on 23 February 2010, Costinha retired and was immediately named Sporting’s director of football, replacing Ricardo Sá Pinto. He was dismissed on 9 February 2011, the day after an interview in which he criticised the club’s board. In June 2011, he took the same role at Servette, where countryman João Alves was manager. The pair reportedly did not see eye to eye; Alves was replaced by João Carlos Pereira in November 2011. After results worsened, both Pereira and Costinha were fired in April 2012, with Alves reinstated. Costinha contested the terms of his removal, claiming his contract ran until June 2013.

Costinha’s first managerial job came on 18 February 2013 at Beira-Mar, replacing Ulisses Morais. He lost his debut 1–0 at Vitória de Setúbal and left on 22 May after the club was relegated from the top flight. On 12 June 2013, he was appointed at Paços de Ferreira, who had qualified for the Champions League for the first time; his former midfield partner Maniche became his assistant. Costinha was sacked after four months due to poor results.

On 20 June 2016, he took over at Académica, recently relegated from the top division, with Maniche again assisting him until leaving for personal reasons in October. On 30 May 2017, he became manager of Nacional. In his first year, the club won the second division title and promotion. He left a year later by mutual consent after Nacional finished second-bottom, a season that included a 10–0 loss to eventual champions Benfica on 10 February 2019.

Costinha returned to Nacional—again relegated from the top division—on 28 June 2021 on a one-year deal, but left on 20 September after one win and one draw in five games.