Samu Costa: The Key Addition for Al-Nassr's New Era
Al-Nassr are closing in on a different kind of signing this summer. Not a headline-chasing superstar, but a midfielder built for structure, control and the unseen work that wins tight games.
According to press reports, the Riyadh club have agreed a deal with Real Mallorca worth nine million euros for Portugal’s Samu Costa. On paper, it looks like a routine squad addition. In reality, it could be a key piece in Ange Postecoglou’s rebuild.
Spanish coach David Martinez, who has watched Costa closely in La Liga, painted a clear picture of what Al-Nassr are buying.
“I know Samu Costa well, as he plays for Real Mallorca, a club that is always fighting to avoid relegation to the second division,” Martinez told Al-Arabiya. That context matters. Mallorca live on the edge most seasons, and players who survive there learn to think quickly and defend even quicker.
Martinez sees those traits as Costa’s calling card. “Samu Costa will add strength to the team, as well as balance on the defensive side, because he is a tactically sharp player, and he usually reads matches very well,” he said.
This is not a midfielder who dazzles with tricks or long-range screamers. Martinez was blunt about that side of his game: “He is not technically gifted, but he makes a lot of good decisions during matches, and he usually prefers to play in his own team’s half rather than in the opposing team’s half.”
So the appeal is clear. Costa is the player who sits in front of the defence, patrols the danger zones and keeps the game under control. He chooses safety over spectacle, structure over chaos.
That is exactly where Martinez believes his value lies. “He always maintains the rhythm of matches, which will help the forwards a great deal, and therefore his role will be essential in achieving balance in the team’s defence,” he explained.
Postecoglou's Vision
Under Postecoglou, that balance will be tested. The Australian coach is expected to impose the same bold, front-foot football that defined his previous jobs. High tempo. Aggressive pressing. Relentless attacking patterns.
“With (Ange) Postecoglou, Al-Nassr will play attacking football, and they will try to dominate matches through short passes and moving the ball forward to play in the opponent’s half,” Martinez said.
In such a system, the holding midfielder becomes the hinge. Lose control there and the whole structure creaks. Get it right and the attacking players thrive with the freedom behind them.
Martinez believes Costa has the versatility to serve that plan. “Samu Costa can play in the midfield position or in any other position, but this will depend on who plays alongside him, and he can also play between the two centre-backs to build attacks,” he noted.
That last detail is crucial. Dropping between the centre-backs to start moves, taking the ball under pressure, setting the first line of build-up – these are the responsibilities that define modern pivots. Costa, in Martinez’s view, has the tactical discipline and positional sense to handle them.
There is another layer to this move: the dressing-room dynamic. Al-Nassr is Cristiano Ronaldo’s team, on and off the pitch. Any new arrival, especially a compatriot, walks into a very particular environment.
From Martinez’s perspective, that is an advantage, not a complication. “From my point of view, a coach always wants players who know each other, because the adaptation period is short, and this relationship will be beneficial for the club,” he said.
Shared language, shared culture, shared reference points – all of it can speed up integration. For a side trying to hit the ground running under a new coach, those margins count.
Martinez has no doubt about how the Portugal captain will receive his fellow countryman. “Samu Costa can create balance, and I am certain that Cristiano Ronaldo will welcome him greatly, and that will be beneficial for Al-Nassr,” he concluded.
Nine million euros for a player whose main virtues are reading the game, holding his position and keeping tempo might not stir social media like a marquee forward. But in a Postecoglou side built on high-risk, high-reward football, the man who calms the storm in midfield often decides how far a project can really go.
