Early career Born in
Sé,
Porto, Pinto began coaching at local
Boavista F.C.'s youth teams in his early 20s. He went on to be assistant manager at
C.D. Trofense and
U.D. Leiria before succeeding
Rui Amorim as manager of the latter in June 2018, aged 29. Eight months later he moved to
SC Mirandela, also in the
Campeonato de Portugal. In June 2019, Pinto was hired at
F.C. Felgueiras 1932 and tasked with taking the club into the professional leagues. On 23 November 2020,
Real S.C. manager Hugo Martins announced his exit two hours before a
Taça de Portugal match and Pinto replaced him, only to be replaced by Luís Loureiro in March after winning and losing six each of 14 fixtures. For
2021–22, Pinto was hired at
Leça F.C. and missed out on promotion to
Liga 3 on the last day as
Vilaverdense FC drew with
C.S. Marítimo B. He also led the team to the quarter-finals of the domestic cup, defeating
Primeira Liga sides
F.C. Arouca and
Gil Vicente F.C. before losing 4–0 at home to
Sporting CP. In June 2022, Pinto was hired at
Lusitânia F.C. of the same league. He left by mutual consent on 19 December having won four and lost five of his 13 games. On 23 January 2023,
AD Fafe hired Pinto. He made his Liga 3 debut five days later in a 1–0 win at
U.S.C. Paredes, ending a club run of seven games without a victory. Having helped the club avoid relegation, he was given another year in charge in June 2023, and kept the club in the league again before leaving.
Tondela Pinto signed for
C.D. Tondela on 30 May 2024, on a one-year contract with the option of a second. His professional debut at age 35 in
Liga Portugal 2 came on 10 August, as
the season opened with a 2–2 draw at
C.S. Marítimo. He was voted Manager of the Month for September/October after winning all five games, scoring 15 goals and conceding three. His team overcame a four-game drawing start to the season, and a five-game run without a win in the middle of the campaign, to win the title with one more point than
F.C. Alverca.
Vitória Guimarães On 13 June 2025, Pinto signed a two-year deal with top-flight
Vitória de Guimarães. On his top flight debut on 11 August, the team lost 3–0 away to
FC Porto. He led the team to their first-ever
Taça da Liga in
2025–26, winning 3–1 away to Porto in the quarter-finals, 2–1 against Sporting CP in the semi-finals, and 2–1 against
Minho derby rivals
S.C. Braga in the final on 10 January. He was sacked on 10 March 2026 with the team ranked 9th in Primeira Liga. ==Honours==