Adriaanse turned him into a prolific left back in the same fashion of Portuguese internationals Miguel or Paulo Ferreira (who played right midfielder during most of his under-21 career). After having scored twice at Associação Naval 1º de Maio in a 3–2 win – he also netted an own goal– Peixoto again suffered a major knee injury that would keep him away from the pitch for the rest of the season, eliminating any hope of World Cup selection. He would be dismissed by Adriaanse and joined La Liga side RCD Espanyol on loan for 2006–07, finally cutting all ties with Porto in March 2007; previously, on 27 February, Espanyol had also terminated his contract as the player failed to make any competitive appearances for the Catalans. Braga and Benfica Peixoto signed a three-year contract with S.C. Braga on 29 May 2007. He declared himself delighted to join "...the fourth biggest team in Portugal." After two intermittent seasons, Peixoto refused to take part in Braga's 2009–10 UEFA Europa League fixtures against IF Elfsborg, after reported interest from S.L. Benfica, thus being suspended. On 7 August 2009, a transfer deal between the two clubs was arranged for a fee of €400,000 – Braga retained 50% of the player's rights. He spent most of his first season playing as left-back, battling for position with another adapted player, Fábio Coentrão. After appearing in 65 official games for Benfica (one goal, in a 6–0 away win against Grupo Desportivo e Recreativo Monsanto in the 2009–10 edition of the Taça de Portugal), Peixoto was deemed surplus to requirements by manager Jorge Jesus as practically all Portuguese players, and was not given a jersey for the 2011–12 campaign, being ultimately released from contract on 6 January 2012. International Aged 28, Peixoto earned his only cap for Portugal, appearing as an 84th-minute substitute for Maniche in a 6–2 friendly loss to Brazil on 19 November 2008. He was called up by Carlos Queiroz for the final games of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification, but did not play. Coaching career Peixoto finished his career with Gil Vicente F.C. in 2014, at the age of 34. He started working as a manager on 11 March 2019, being appointed at LigaPro side Varzim SC. On 19 June that year, after succeeding in avoiding relegation, he moved to Associação Académica de Coimbra in the same league. He left his post five months