Five years ago, Renato Paiva, then coach of Benfica B, was surprised to see Pepo, who was at Cova da Piedade at the time, playing only in the Second Division. “I don’t know what he’s doing here. He’s got the quality for more,” he said.
The truth is, after that season, the midfielder took a step back to Liga 3 and, over the next two years, struggled to show his best football. Frustration started to build and eventually turned into acceptance... until Caldas came along.
The invitation made perfect sense. He returned home to find happiness again and rediscovered himself in the magic of Mata. A special club for special players. This is Pepo’s journey, told in his own words to Flashscore.
Rediscovering football: 'Coming back to Caldas was coming home'
This is your third season at Caldas, a team currently in the promotion play-off spots in Liga 3 and that recently knocked Tondela out of the Portuguese Cup. How have you felt at the start of this season?
"I’m feeling really good. Caldas is still an amateur club in many ways, but you can see a real desire to professionalise and to give us the conditions to face any team head-on, with no excuses. That’s been showing on the pitch.
"We’re in a promotion spot, very close to first place, and we’ve spent some time at the top already. I feel the team is confident and determined to do something different this year, because the truth is Caldas is always close but never quite makes the top four. We want to break that cycle.
"The squad was really well put together: we have experienced players, talented youngsters, and a squad where almost everyone could start. You just have to look at how often the starting eleven changes, and yet whoever comes in always delivers. That depth is our biggest difference this year. So I’m optimistic about the future and believe we can achieve some really interesting things."
You played for Caldas as a youth player, but never at the senior level, and in 2023, you decided to return to your hometown club. What motivated that decision?
"I had two seasons in the Second Division where, honestly, I felt I’d done enough to stay or even move up. I clearly remember a comment from coach Renato Paiva saying he didn’t understand how I was still in the Second Division. That memory popped up on Facebook recently - it was five years ago today.
"And yet, despite that, at the end of the season, I ended up dropping to Liga 3. It’s not easy to deal with those moments, because often it’s not just up to you. In my first year in Liga 3, I played much less than expected at Alverca; then at Académica, I went with the same ambition to relaunch my career, but it didn’t work out either.
"By the time I was 28 or 29, I was thinking: 'If it didn’t happen last season, or the one before, when will it?' I felt maybe it was time to give my family some stability. I’d just become a father, and my partner had been moving around with me for years. I felt it was time to think less about my career and more about what I could give them.
"Coming back to Caldas made perfect sense. I knew almost everyone, many since childhood, and it was always a club I found tough to play against. Now that I’m here, I understand why."
Without going too deep, I imagine there was some frustration at that stage. Football is all about expectations: it’s one thing to feel you’re good enough, another to hear people like Renato Paiva, for example, say you’re good enough for the top division, and then a year later you’re in Liga 3. Do you think that affected you?
"At the time, I didn’t think so. I thought it didn’t influence my performance. But looking back now, I realise that when things weren’t going well, maybe I used those excuses to protect myself.
"When I went to Liga 3, I was thinking very rationally: I was joining a strong Alverca side, a team that won a lot more, and as a player who likes to have the ball, I thought I’d stand out more than in a Second Division team fighting relegation. The idea was clear... take a step back to try to take two forward.
"And the club had excellent conditions, even better than some I found in the Second Division. But I was also a bit unlucky: I arrived with Vasco Faísca, but he left after four games. A new coach came in with a much more physical style, which didn’t suit my game. That’s when I felt the weight of stereotypes again: either you get a coach who really believes in you, or they see you as “too slight” and write you off straight away.
"That’s been the story of my career. Whenever I moved up, it was because someone already knew me and what I could offer. From the outside, there was always that doubt: “He’s good on the ball… but can he handle it?” And they wouldn’t even give me a chance to prove it.
"Over the years, the frustration grew until it stopped being frustration... and became acceptance. There was a point where I felt nothing better was going to happen."
So, Caldas is a kind of refuge, a place where you came back to enjoy football again and balance it with family life. Is that right?
"Yes, exactly. Coming back to Caldas was coming home, but not with the ambition of “I’ll have a good season here, be happy, things go well and then I’ll leave”. That wasn’t it. I wanted to stabilise my life and, at the same time, help the club try something different. Plus, coming here also allowed me to start preparing for life after football. And that helped me see football in a lighter, more positive way, as something I’ll definitely miss when it’s over.
"Then the national team (Mozambique) came along and gave me a huge boost. But it also brought challenges: it’s not easy to find a job that lets you train, go to camps, be away for two weeks at a time, and still have time for my daughter and now my second child.
"So this became perfect: family and football. I have plenty of time for them and I’m able to be present for every stage of their lives. And that’s been really good for me."
Has it changed the way you see football and your future in the game?
"Yes, coming back to Caldas changed that. Before, at every club, I was always thinking about the next step—either getting promoted with the team or using the season to move up a level. Here, it’s different.
"I stopped thinking so much about the long term and started enjoying the moment a lot more. I took a lot of pressure off myself and started playing with more happiness. I was also lucky to have a coach who really trusted me, which made everything easier."
'The Portuguese Cup means a lot to Caldas'
You mentioned earlier that Caldas is still an amateur club. The team hasn’t played in the professional leagues since the late 1980s. Now, in your third season, how do you see Caldas’ ambition? Do you believe it’s possible to reach the Second Division?
"To be as honest as possible, it’s a topic I don’t have all the answers to. Some decisions are out of our hands as players. What I can say is that, in the dressing room, we feel a very present structure and a clear idea: if we get the chance to go up, we want to go up. I’ve never felt that attitude of “maybe it’s better not to get promoted”. Not at all. The shared goal is to compete, fight for the top spots, and do everything we can.
"Then, if we’re lucky enough to go up, I believe the club will find solutions to take the necessary steps. Always with the mentality of facing things head-on, never with a victim mentality. And honestly, reaching the professional leagues would be a huge dream."
Académica, Belenenses, Mafra, Atletico... That’s a really strong group of teams... What’s your take?
"The competition is huge. But that also makes you believe more, because despite the differences in budgets and structure, on the pitch you see that any team can beat any other.
"What sets us apart is the group: the unity, the strength we get from each other, and the strong human side of the club. The pressure is always higher on the other teams, which lets us play with more freedom and keeps us united in tough moments.
"The club has also made an effort to improve conditions and bring them closer to what other teams have. In the long run, that’s crucial, because those details always make a difference over a whole season."
There’s another competition where you’ve done particularly well. You knocked out Tondela from the top division and now you’ll face SC Braga. What are your expectations for the Portuguese Cup?
"Here in Caldas, the Cup is something special. Before I arrived, they’d already reached the semi-finals in 2017/18, and that left a big mark on the club. Sometimes we even joke that we wish the city would get behind the league as much as they do the Cup, because that support makes a huge difference.
"Back to the point: the Cup really means a lot to Caldas. There’s the memory of the penalty shootout against Benfica in 2022… and that always brings high expectations. Then there’s also the “Giant-Killer” reputation, which affects other teams—they never see us as just another Liga 3 side.
"And we feed off that, because we approach every Cup game exactly the same way we do league matches: we press high, play face-to-face, and don’t just sit back with ten men in the box. That’s our DNA. All the pressure is on the opponents, so we can play with more freedom and enjoy it. The ambition is always high, and it’s great to see we can compete at that level."
Is that how you’ll approach the game against SC Braga?
"Honestly, even though SC Braga is theoretically stronger than Tondela, our approach doesn’t change. All the pressure is on them. We don’t see it as just a “special day” with a packed Mata. We’re going out to win and to get through to the next round. That’s our ambition."
Caldas really does seem like a family club, with players who stay for years, a coach who’s been there since 2016, and a special stadium like Campo da Mata.
"The big difference here is that they don’t see players just as tools. They see us as people. In other places—and this isn’t a criticism, because I was happy at many clubs—it’s very much about football: if you’re doing well, you’re in; if not, they look for someone else.
"At Caldas, it’s not like that. They give you space to make mistakes, to grow, to recover. If you’re not at your best one season, they don’t just write you off. We feel that everyone matters, that everyone is needed, and that makes you feel at home, even if you’re not from here.
"You can see it in the examples. Rafa Pinto, who came from Lisbon, found stability and confidence here. He had a great season and ended up moving to the top division in Luxembourg, playing Conference League playoffs. And he was really sad to leave.
"Tomás Castro, who was coming back from a long injury, found a club here that welcomed him, gave him time and space. He felt like a player again.
"This happens because Caldas doesn’t discard anyone just because they’re not at their best. That stability and care make all the difference for a player’s mindset. That’s why so many people put down roots here."
The bittersweet side of a career: 'My dream was always to reach the Primeira Liga'
At 31, what goes through your mind when you look back?
"Above all, that it goes by really fast. And that you really have to enjoy it, because football is the best job in the world. The dressing room, the people you meet, the bonds you create… that’s unique.
"All my best friends came from football. My daughter’s godfather, for example, is Filipe Oliveira—I met him in the Leiria regional team, then we played together at UD Leiria and Vilafranquense. These are people you’re with every day, often more than your own family, sharing problems, joys, defeats, victories.
"At the end of your career, that’s what stays with you: the people, the stories, the friendships. That’s what I value most when I look back."
The only thing missing was reaching the Primeira Liga?
"Yes. But who knows, maybe it could still happen, right? (laughs)"
You never know, especially now with your appearances for the Mozambique national team.
"But yes, it’s that one thing that still lingers. When I went to the Second Division, I actually had a good offer from the Bulgarian top division, but my dream was always to be a professional in Portugal, especially to play in the Primeira Liga.
"I would have loved to experience that. These days I don’t think about it every day—only when it comes up in conversation—but honestly, it would still be a dream come true."
Was going abroad ever an option?
"I thought about it, but more at a time when things weren’t going so well. When things were good, my goal was always to stay in Portugal, move up here, and try to reach the Primeira Liga. Family means everything to me. The idea of going abroad only made sense when I wasn’t happy or when things weren’t going as I wanted. If I can be close to my wife, my kids, my parents, grandparents, siblings, and cousins… that means a lot to me."
'It’s only a matter of time before Geny Catamo makes the leap'
You play alongside Geny Catamo (Sporting) for the Mozambique national team. There’s been a lot of talk about him moving to the Premier League, for example. Do you see that happening?
"Honestly, I think it’s only a matter of time before he makes the leap. As a teammate, Geny is incredibly humble. When I first joined the national team, I expected someone different, more of a “star,” but no... he’s actually quite shy.
"In the dressing room, he only really opens up when he needs to vent, when something is really bothering him. But you can immediately tell he’s a good person: humble, calm, very respectful. And in terms of quality… he’s on another level. He’s really exceptional. So I’m absolutely sure he won’t stay at Sporting. It’s just a matter of time before he moves up to an even higher level."
And what do you hope your participation in the AFCON can bring you for the future?
"Honestly, I don’t like to think about it that way. For me, AFCON is more of a reward for what I didn’t manage to achieve during my career than something that will open doors for the future. I just want to enjoy the experience. The rest… is in God’s hands."
To finish, if football were a person, what would you say to it?
"Thank you for everything!"