Education
Born in Lisbon, Diogo finished his football formation with local Sporting Clube de Portugal, but left the club at the age of 18, making his professional debuts with F.C. Alverca in the third division.
Born in Lisbon, Diogo finished his football formation with local Sporting Clube de Portugal, but left the club at the age of 18, making his professional debuts with F.C. Alverca in the third division.
In the 1995 summer he moved to Académica de Coimbra in the second level and, one year later, returned to Alverca who now was in the same category, promoting to the Primeira Liga at the end of his second season. From 1999 to 2001 Diogo appeared in 48 top division games (44 starts) and scored three goals, helping Alverca finish in midtable on both occasions. Diogo played all the matches but one for the Portuguese under-20 team that finished third in the 1995 Fédération internationale de football association World Youth Championship held in Qatar.