Ferreira earned 62 caps for the Portugal national team between 2002 and 2010, playing at two European Championships and two World Cups and finishing as runner-up at Euro 2004.

Ferreira signed with Vitória de Setúbal for 2000–01, scoring two goals in 33 games during the campaign to help his team promote to the Primeira Liga after finishing in third place.

[12] Ferreira scored his first competitive goal for the Blues on 19 February 2006, in a 3–1 home victory over Colchester United in the FA Cup's fifth round.

[13] On 30 April, as his team wrapped up a second successive league title with a 3–0 win over Manchester United, his tackle on Wayne Rooney fractured the England striker's metatarsal and jeopardised his chance's of going to June's World Cup.

[21] On 2 December, in the same competition, he netted his second and last goal for the Londoners, a late equaliser in extra time of the quarter-finals at Blackburn Rovers which ended in a penalty shootout loss.

[22] Following physical problems that afflicted José Bosingwa, Ashley Cole and Branislav Ivanović, Ferreira was given a more consistent role as a starter as Yuri Zhirkov featured in the other defensive wing, most significantly in the 7–1 rout of Aston Villa[23] and the 2–1 victory at Manchester United.

[29] His first league appearance occurred on 22 December, after coming on for injured Ivanović in a 1–1 draw away to Tottenham Hotspur;[30] in the final minutes of that match, he suffered a fractured cheekbone in a clash with Gareth Bale.

[31] On 27 March 2012, in his first UEFA Champions League start of the season, Ferreira had another solid defensive performance to help Chelsea defeat Benfica 1–0 at the Estádio da Luz.

[35] Afterwards, teammate Frank Lampard addressed the crowd and praised the 34-year-old defender, who announced he was retiring from professional football and thanked the fans for their continued support;[36] over nine seasons, he appeared in 217 official games.

[40] Ferreira made two appearances for Portugal in the 2006 World Cup: in the 0–1 semi-final loss against France, he replaced injured Miguel during the second half,[41] and started the third place play-off against the host country Germany (1–3 defeat).