Porto Costa, a product of
Boavista FC's
youth system, was born in
Vila Nova de Gaia,
Porto District, and moved to neighbours
FC Porto when he was still an apprentice. He made his
Primeira Liga debut in a 20 January 2002
derby precisely against Boavista (2–0 away loss, 90 minutes played), but never became more than a fringe player, being preferred in the stopper's pecking order in consecutive seasons to namesake
Jorge,
Pedro Emanuel,
Pepe and
Bruno Alves. On 21 May 2003, Costa
replaced the injured
Costinha in the first minutes of the
2003 UEFA Cup final in
Seville, which ended in a
3–2 win over
Celtic.
Wolfsburg in October 2009 In July 2007, as first-team opportunities appeared few at Porto, Costa signed with
Bundesliga club
VfL Wolfsburg on a three-year contract. After a shaky start, he finished
the season as an undisputed starter as the side
qualified for the
UEFA Cup. Costa scored just 15 seconds after his introduction in a match against
Karlsruher SC on 28 September 2008, making it the
second-fastest goal ever scored by a substitute. In the
summer of 2009, he was about to be transferred to
Real Zaragoza, but the deal collapsed after the two parties could not reach an agreement; the move was finally cancelled on 29 July, and the player returned to Wolfsburg. On 28 January 2010, although he was being used regularly, Costa joined
Lille OSC in France.
Valencia On 17 May 2010, after having contributed relatively to Lille's
fourth place in
Ligue 1, he moved teams and countries again, joining
Valencia CF of Spain on a four-year contract. He scored his first goal on 9 March 2011, putting the
Che ahead at
FC Schalke 04 in the
round of 16 of the
UEFA Champions League, a 3–1 defeat (4–2 on aggregate). In the ensuing off-season, Costa was selected by manager
Unai Emery as one of the team's
captains. However, things quickly turned sour for the former: he was replaced at
half-time of an eventual 4–3 home win against
Racing de Santander, and quickly went from first to fourth choice after unflaterring comments directed against his teammates and management.
Later career Costa left Valencia by mutual consent on 21 July 2014, as his contract was due to expire in June 2015. One week later, he agreed to a two-year deal at
Al-Sailiya SC. He scored his first and only goal for the Qatari club on 30 October, in a 4–3 home victory over
Al-Wakrah SC.
PAOK FC signed Costa in late January 2015, following a successful medical; in an interview to Portuguese newspaper
A Bola a few months after his transfer, he talked about his experience in Asia by stating: "It was a completely different reality, that I couldn't accept. Everything was so non-professional". During his 12-month tenure he appeared in 37 games in all competitions, his only goal coming on 27 August 2015 in a 1–1 draw at
Brøndby IF in the
play-off round of the Europa League. Costa returned to Spain and its top division on 1 February 2016, to join
Granada CF until June 2017; he vowed to defend his new team "to the death". His first appearance took place six days later, as he played the full 90 minutes in a 1–2 home loss against
Real Madrid. On 5 July 2016, after contributing 14 starts and one goal to his side's eventual
survival, Costa had his contract terminated by mutual consent. He resumed his career at
FC Luzern in Switzerland days later. The 36-year-old Costa returned to Portugal after one decade in June 2017, signing a two-year deal at top-flight club
C.D. Tondela. On 1 July 2019, he returned to Boavista. On 13 August 2020, shortly after having announced his retirement, Costa was named
sporting director at Boavista. He resigned the following 29 January due to conflicts with the fanbase. ==International career==