Born in the village of Oliveira, in Guimarães, Machado started his career with his local Vitória de Guimarães' youth sides, having a head coach spell with lowly SC Vila Real in between. After two years with another modest club in the north, AD Fafe, he moved to another side in his region, Moreirense FC, helping the latter promote from the third division to the Primeira Liga in just two years. Machado then coached Moreirense to a comfortable 12th position in their debut season, finishing ninth in the following campaign, after which he returned to Guimarães. Subsequently he signed with C.D. Nacional, helping the Madeirans finish a best-ever fifth, with qualification to the UEFA Cup. After almost two years at Académica de Coimbra he joined S.C. Braga, where he did not meet the expectations of a UEFA Cup place, thus being sacked. Machado rejoined Nacional for 2008–09, bettering the club's best-ever finish as fourth. However, on 13 December 2009, he announced he would leave the benches for a period, after surgery-related complications; he was replaced by assistant Predrag Jokanović, and eventually left his post at the end of the campaign, replaced by precisely the Serbian. On 2 June 2010, Machado returned to Vitória Guimarães, taking the Minho team to the final of the Taça de Portugal in his first season. On 26 August 2011 he left the club, after Europa League elimination at the hands of Atlético Madrid. Machado signed with Nacional for a third spell on 13 October 2012, replacing fired Pedro Caixinha. A contract termination by mutual consent was reached on 28 December 2016, as the team ranked third from bottom in the league and tied for points with the first side inside the relegation zone, having also been ousted from the Portuguese Cup; he was also relieved of his duties at F.C. Arouca on 21 March 2017, becoming the first manager to be fired by two teams in the season, as both eventually dropped down a level. On 27 May 2017, Machado signed a one-year contract with former club Moreirense. On 29 October, as they were placed second from the bottom in the top division, he was sacked.
