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This is a Portuguese name; the family name is Rodrigues da Costa.

Francisco José Rodrigues da Costa, OIH (born 1 December 1974 in Lisbon), commonly known as Costinha (Portuguese pronunciation: [kɔʃˈtiɲɐ]), is a retired Portuguese footballer, who played as a defensive midfielder.

Best known for his tackling and positioning,^[1] he played professionally in five different countries, and was also a Portuguese international.

Club career

After years of playing in the lower leagues, Costinha caught the interest of French side AS Monaco FC while playing with C.D. Nacional, then in the Portuguese second division. After a tentative first season, he became an important first team member, helping with 28 matches and one goal to the club's 1999–2000 league conquest.

Aged almost 27, Costinha made his Portuguese league debut when he signed with F.C. Porto in 2001–02. He would be an instrumental midfield element in the northerners' two consecutive national titles. Arguably, Costinha's finest club moment came on 9 March 2004 when he scored against and effectively knocked out Manchester United in 2003–04's Champions League first knockout round.^[1] Porto went on to win the title, beating former side Monaco 3–0 in the final.

An undisputed starter again in 2004–05, Costinha was sold to FC Dynamo Moscow in May 2005, alongside teammates Maniche and Giourkas Seitaridis, following Derlei (left in January).^[2] Unsettled, he left for Atlético Madrid, where he would play in 2006–07.^[3]

Costinha would be released by the Colchoneros in August 2007, joining Serie A outfit Atalanta BC,^[4] where he would appear very rarely throughout his spell (only one match, in his first season) due to serious injuries and, later, technical choices from his club, who considered the player unfit to play competitively, despite him having the highest salary in the first team (€700,000 per year, in a contract due to expire in June 2010). The club tried to agree a mutual termination of the contract with the player, and also attempted unsuccessfully to obtain rescision of his contract through the Italian Football League.^[5]

On 23 February 2010, 35-year old Costinha finally rescinded his link to Atalanta.^[6] He immediately retired, being named shortly afterwards Sporting Clube de Portugal's director of football, succeeding sacked Ricardo Sá Pinto, his former international teammate.

International career

Costinha made his debut for Portugal on 14 October 1998, during a Euro 2000 qualifier 1–0 home win against Slovakia, going on to appear in the tournament's final stage, where he scored an injury time header against Romania (1–0).

He also played at UEFA Euro 2004 and the 2006 FIFA World Cup. During the latter, on 25 June, he took part in the Battle of Nuremberg, being one of four players sent off in the round of 16 success against the Netherlands (1–0), after two bookable offenses, the second being a handball.

Costinha finished his international career with 53 caps and two goals, having been rarely called during the Euro 2008 qualifying stage.

Club statistics

Honours

• Porto:
  • UEFA Champions League: 2003–04
  • Intercontinental Cup: 2004
  • UEFA Cup: 2002–03
  • Portuguese League: 2002–03, 2003–04
  • Portuguese Cup: 2002-03

• Monaco:
  • French League: 1999–2000

References

External links

• Atalanta profile (Italian)
• Stats and profile at Zerozero
• Stats at ForaDeJogo (Portuguese)
• PortuGOAL profile
• L'Équipe stats (French)

Portugal squad – UEFA Euro 2000 semi-finalists 1 Baía • 2 J. Costa • 3 Rui Jorge • 4 Vidigal • 5 Couto • 6 Sousa • 7 Figo • 8 Pinto • 9 Sá Pinto • 10 R. Costa • 11 Conceição • 12 Espinha • 13 Dimas • 14 Xavier • 15 Costinha • 16 Beto • 17 Bento • 18 Pauleta • 19 Capucho • 20 Secretário • 21 Nuno Gomes • 22 Quim • Coach: Coelho

Portugal squad – UEFA Euro 2004 Runners-up 1 Ricardo • 2 Ferreira • 3 Rui Jorge • 4 J. Andrade • 5 Couto • 6 Costinha • 7 Figo • 8 Petit • 9 Pauleta • 10 Rui Costa • 11 Simão • 12 Quim • 13 Miguel • 14 Valente • 15 Beto • 16 R. Carvalho • 17 C. Ronaldo • 18 Maniche • 19 Tiago • 20 Deco • 21 Nuno Gomes • 22 Moreira • 23 H. Postiga • Coach: Scolari

Portugal squad – 2006 FIFA World Cup Fourth Place 1 Ricardo • 2 Ferreira • 3 Caneira • 4 Costa • 5 Meira • 6 Costinha • 7 Figo • 8 Petit • 9 Pauleta • 10 Viana • 11 Simão • 12 Quim • 13 Miguel • 14 Valente • 15 Boa Morte • 16 Carvalho • 17 C. Ronaldo • 18 Maniche • 19 Tiago • 20 Deco • 21 Nuno Gomes • 22 Santos • 23 H. Postiga • Coach: Scolari