*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:00, 29 March 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:28, 23 March 2025 (UTC)
Inácio was born inAlmada,Setúbal District and raised inSeixal, a municipality located 34.2 km (21.3 mi) away. Growing up, he would play football wherever he could on the streets or in his house, and regularly attendedSporting CP matches with his father.[2]
Despite not having a particular idol, Inácio looked to emulateJérémy Mathieu.[2]
Inácio began his career at localAlmada, before moving toSporting's academy. Prior to this, he had several trials with crosstown rivalsBenfica, but ultimately decided not to join them when his father's car broke down on two occasions when he was being taken to training.[3] On 13 January 2018, he signed his first professional contract at the age of 16.[4]
Inácio had his first call-up to the first team on 6 July 2020, remaining unused in a goalless draw atMoreirense in thePrimeira Liga;[5] he would initially struggle to be integrated, due to being reserved by nature, but managed to succeed with the help of managerRuben Amorim and his teammatesNuno Mendes,Eduardo Quaresma andTiago Tomás, whom he had befriended during his time in the youth sides.[2] He made his debut in a 2–0 away win againstPortimonense on 4 October, as a 62nd-minutesubstitute forZouhair Feddal.[6]
On 20 March 2021, Inácio scored his first goal, heading home from close range in the 1–0 home victory overVitória de Guimarães.[7] On 23 January, he provided theassist forPedro Porro in a 1–0 defeat ofBraga to help his clubwin theTaça da Liga; his performance in the match impressed Amorim, with the player eventually surpassingLuís Neto in the pecking order.[8] He played 20 times in thedomestic league for the eventual champions, ending a 19-year drought.[9]
Inácio was named defender of the month for December 2021.[10] The following 29 January, his second-half header helped his team come from behind to defeat Benfica 2–1 in theleague cup final.[11] On 1 April, he agreed to an extension until 2026.[12]
On 12 November 2023, in theLisbon derby against Benfica at theEstádio da Luz, Inácio wassent off after receiving a second yellow card at the start of the second half; Sporting went on to lose 2–1.[13] On 14 December, in their finalUEFA Europa Leaguegroup game, at home toSturm Graz, he came off the bench athalf-time and scored twice in ten minutes to seal a 3–0 victory.[14] Duringthe season, he contributed 32 appearances and nearly 2,500 minutes as the club own its 20th league,[15] being consequently included in theTeam of the Year.[16]
Inácio made his 200th competitive appearance on 23 February 2025, in a 2–2 away draw againstAVS.[17]
In October 2022, Inácio was named in a preliminary 55-man squad for the2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.[23] His first appearance took place on 23 March 2023, when he played the entire 4–0 victory overLiechtenstein in theUEFA Euro 2024qualifiers which was the first game in charge of new managerRoberto Martínez.[24] On 11 September, still during that stage, he scored his first and second goals in a 9–0 home defeat ofLuxembourg, Portugal's biggest win in international history.[25]
Inácio was selected for the Euro 2024 finals.[26] In the team's opening match against theCzech Republic, he replacedDiogo Dalot in the 63rd minute of the 2–1 comeback win.[27] He also featured 90 minutes of the finalgroup fixture, a 2–0 loss toGeorgia,[28] in a quarter-final elimination againstFrance.[29]
Inácio has been predominantly deployed as a central defender, but can also play as aleft-back and amidfielder due to his attributes.[30][31][32][33] He is noted for his anticipation, composure, decisions, positioning, tackling and passing ability, including long-range passes which enables him to break down attacks and subsequently play the ball out or start offensive plays from the back, as well as for his acceleration, agility and pace.[34][35][36]
Inácio was a Sporting fan since he was a child, and his brother Rodrigo was born with adisability. The former considered himself a shy person who did not feel comfortable posting about himself onsocial media; his favourite hobbies were playingstreet football and thePlayStation alone or with friends.[2][37][38]
^Lemos, Pedro (11 September 2023)."Portugal 9–0 Luxemburgo (crónica)" [Portugal 9–0 Luxembourg (report)] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved11 September 2023.
Luxembourg
