Cadú

Boavista In summer 2004, Cadú signed for Boavista. In his debut campaign, he scored twice from 30 appearances for the sixth-placed side. as they eventually achieved the same placement.

CFR Cluj On 14 July 2006, Cadú joined CFR Cluj alongside his compatriots Manuel José, Pedro Oliveira and António Semedo, for a €750,000 fee. He made his Liga I debut on 6 August, when player-coach Dorinel Munteanu sent him in as a 79th-minute substitute for Zoran Milošević in a 4–0 home victory over Unirea Urziceni. He scored his first league goal on 20 September, in the 5–1 home win against FC Universitatea Craiova. During that season, CFR won a double to inaugurate the club's trophy cabinet, and the player contributed four goals in 29 league matches under Ioan Andone; one of these was scored in the last round from a penalty in a 1–0 derby win over Universitatea Cluj that mathematically secured the title.

Cadú made his debut in European competitions by playing both legs of the 3–1 aggregate loss to Anorthosis Famagusta in the 2007–08 UEFA Cup second qualifying round. He then made six group-stage appearances in the following season's UEFA Champions League with the Railway Men, including the historic 2–1 defeat of Roma at the Stadio Olimpico. He claimed his second Cupa României at the end of the latter campaign, featuring the entire 3–0 win against Politehnica Timișoara in the final.

Cadú began 2009–10 by winning the winning the Supercupa României, again starting and finishing the penalty shoot-out victory over Unirea Urziceni and converting the final spot kick. Subsequently, he helped his side to eliminate FK Sarajevo in the Europa League play-offs, reaching the group stage and taking part in five matches.

Following another penalty shoot-out victory against Unirea Urziceni, Cadú won the 2010 domestic supercup. On 19 October, in the Champions League group phase, he scored a goal and an own goal in the 3–2 defeat away to Bayern Munich.

Cadú's last trophy won with CFR Cluj was the 2011–12 national championship, making 27 appearances under managers Jorge Costa and Andone and scoring on five occasions; the title was confirmed after he netted in the 88th minute of the 3–2 win over Universitatea Cluj. and being part of the squad that earned ten points in the group stage against Braga, Galatasaray and Manchester United;

On 6 May 2014, he made his 200th Romanian top-flight appearance in a 3–0 away win over Dinamo București, becoming the foreign player with the most after the Romanian revolution. His last in the competition took place nine days later in the 3–1 victory against Gaz Metan Mediaș at the Dr. Constantin Rădulescu Stadium. making his Cypriot First Division debut on 24 August in a 2–0 away victory against Nea Salamina and scoring in the following two rounds against Ethnikos Achna (2–2) and Doxa Katokopias (4–0). He appeared in the two-legged 3–1 loss to Zenit Saint Petersburg in the Champions League third qualifying round, subsequently taking part in both games of the Europa League play-off as his side was defeated 5–1 on aggregate by Tottenham Hotspur; those were his last appearances in European competitions, where he accumulated 35 matches with two goals. He scored his first goal on 25 April in a 2–1 away victory against Académica de Coimbra, remaining with the club in spite of its top-flight relegation.

Cadú took part in 121 games in the Portuguese main division in five seasons, scoring seven times.

Later career On 26 July 2016, the 34-year-old Cadú joined Leixões of the LigaPro. Before retiring in 2021, he represented lower-league sides Merelinense and Maia Lidador.

International career Cadú played four matches for the Portugal under-21 team, adding two appearances at B level. On 25 April 2026, in the same capacitiy, he was appointed at his main club CFR Cluj.

Honours CFR Cluj Liga I: 2007–08, 2009–10, 2011–12 Cupa României: 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10 Supercupa României: 2009, 2010

Individual Liga I Central Defender of the Year: 2009–10