Having grown through the ranks of
Vitória de Guimarães,
Porto-born Duda had not yet played one single competitive senior game when he was sold to
Cádiz CF in the Spanish
Segunda División B. For the
2001–02 season he switched to
La Liga with
Málaga CF and, after a loan move to
Segunda División with
Levante UD, was everpresent in a team that achieved two consecutive 10th-place finishes, also
appearing in the
UEFA Cup via
the Intertoto. In
2005–06, involved in a contract dispute, Duda featured scarcely as Málaga were relegated and, during the summer, he joined
Andalusia neighbours
Sevilla FC. Incidentally, his arrival coincided with the emergence of another left-footed player,
Antonio Puerta (whom played as either
left-back or
midfielder); after Puerta's sudden death
the following campaign he also played backup, to
Diego Capel. With Capel firmly established as first-choice, Duda was loaned for
2008–09 to an old acquaintance, Málaga, in August 2008. During the season, he was an instrumental attacking element as the side narrowly missed on
Europa League qualification, with compatriot
Eliseu often playing in the other wing. In late August 2009, after intense negotiations, Duda moved permanently to Málaga on a four-year contract, with Sevilla benefitting from a percentage of any future sale. In the
first season of his second spell he was heavily played as they narrowly avoided relegation, leading the team in goals; May 2010 was a particular active period for him as he netted in 1–1 draws, at
Athletic Bilbao from a direct
corner kick and in the season's closer at home against
Real Madrid, in which he was also
sent off after
elbowing Xabi Alonso. After suffering an injury during the 2010 World Cup, Duda underwent surgery to fix his
pubalgia ailment and missed the beginning of the
new season. In his return to action, on 21 November 2010, he played the first 60 minutes of a 3–0 away defeat against
Deportivo de La Coruña. On 29 January 2011, he celebrated his 200th Spanish top flight match by scoring against
Real Zaragoza, but in a 1–2 home defeat. In
2011–12, following the summer signings of
Santi Cazorla and
Joaquín and the ostracism to which
Manuel Pellegrini voted
Apoño after the first matchday, Duda was often used as a
central midfielder. His first goal of the campaign came on 22 March 2012 – with his first touch – from a long-range shot in an eventual 4–2 home win over
Rayo Vallecano. Duda made his 200th league appearance for Málaga on 31 March 2012, in a 0–2 home defeat against
Real Betis. He started
the following season as an habitual
substitute but, on 4 December, in a rare start, at home to
R.S.C. Anderlecht in the
group stage of the
UEFA Champions League, he scored both of his team's goals in a 2–2 draw. On 1 July 2013, the 33-year-old Duda signed a two-year extension to his contract with the option of a third, running until 2015. On 1 February of the following year he scored his first goals of
the new campaign, netting a brace to help defeat his former club Sevilla 3–2 at
La Rosaleda Stadium. Duda announced he was leaving Málaga in May 2017. He made 349 competitive appearances during his spell, 315 in the Spanish top flight alone. Shortly after, he returned to the club as director of its youth academy. ==International career==