José Márcio da Costa (born 4 July 1983), known as Márcio Mossoró, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. His nickname stemmed for his birthplace. He spent most of his professional career in Portugal, representing mainly Braga where he appeared in 175 official matches over five seasons. In 2014 he signed with İstanbul Başakşehir from Turkey, where he also endured a lengthy spell.

Club career

Born in Mossoró, Rio Grande do Norte, Mossoró began his professional career at Ferroviário Atlético Clube (CE) in 1999, before moving to Santa Catarina Clube and then Paulista Futebol Clube. Shortly after, he broke into the first team, and helped to qualification for the final of the Campeonato Paulista, being defeated by Associação Desportiva São Caetano. In 2005, Mossoró played a key role for the side as they won the Copa do Brasil. He was then transferred to Sport Club Internacional of Porto Alegre for the second half of the season, making his Série A debut in the process. Mossoró was loaned to C.S. Marítimo of Portugal in July 2007. His performances, which included braces in Primeira Liga wins against Associação Naval 1º de Maio (3–0) and S.C. Braga (4–1) were impressive enough to earn him a permanent €1 million deal with the latter club, which signed the player to a four-year contract at the end of the campaign. During his first two years, Mossoró was a very important first-team member when available, helping the Minho side to finish a best-ever runner-up in 2009–10. Following a 31 October 2009 scuffle at the end of the 2–0 home win against S.L. Benfica – with his team then in the lead – he was suspended for three games and also suffered a serious injury in the final stretch, with Braga eventually being surpassed in the table by that opponent. Mossoró left the Estádio Municipal de Braga in June 2013, aged 30. Subsequently, he represented Al-Ahli SC (Jeddah), İstanbul Başakşehir F.K. and Göztepe SK, with the last two clubs hailing from the Turkish Süper Lig; in that nation, he also appeared for TFF First League's Altay SK, achieving promotion in his only season.

Honours

Paulista Internacional Braga