He also held an Italian passport, and played professionally in five countries, mainly in Portugal – where he represented six teams in seven years, including a very brief spell with Benfica.
After a brief spell with Grêmio he signed with Finnish club HJK in 1998 and, after only two matches, was loaned to Atlantis of the country's second division for the remainder of the season.
[5][3][4] Manduca blossomed into a top-flight player with Marítimo,[6] where he scored in a 2004–05 UEFA Cup first round penalty shootout exit against Rangers,[7] moving to Benfica in January 2006 on a four-and-a-half-year contract.
[10] In August 2006, Manduca signed a one-year loan with the option for a permanent move with AEK Athens,[11] as he was deemed surplus to requirements by new Benfica coach Fernando Santos.
[23] He was also a regular in the next season's Champions League group stage[24] and equalised from the penalty spot in a 1–1 home draw with Ajax on 30 September 2014.
[29] His short spell in charge saw the team win the double after beating AEL Limassol 4–2 in the domestic cup decider,[30] and collecting the four points needed to conquer the league title.