Albion Analytics: Costinha

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The Portuguese defender joined us from Olympiacos.

Liam Tharme

Albion Analytics

2026-07-19T06:00+01:00

Fabian Hurzeler has added European experience to his Brighton side with the signing of 26-year-old right-back Costinha from Olympiacos.

He joins following a two-year stint in Greece, having won the league title in his first season there. That tends to be expected of a club that size, though they had finished third in the two campaigns prior to Costinha’s arrival.

He played in a defence which was the meanest in the Super League in 2024/25, conceding just 22 goals in 32 games, going unbeaten at home and keeping 22 clean sheets in all competitions as Olympiacos reached the Europa League round of 16.

Their defence last term was even stronger, allowing just 17 goals, though their attack did not deliver and AEK Athens beat Olympiacos to the title by six points. Costinha was a regular starter last season in a 4-2-3-1, part of the side who made it to the Champions League knockout rounds before losing 2-0 to Bayer Leverkusen over two legs.

His 16 European appearances at Olympiacos — nine in the Champions League, seven in the Europa League — will be a valuable asset as Brighton enter a season with Conference League football. Hurzeler has praised Costinha’s “defensive capabilities (and) intensity,” and pointed out his ability in both sides of the game.

The defender won the Greek Super League in his first campaign with Olympiacos. 📸 by Paul Hazlewood.

The former Portugal youth international stands out for his physicality and defensive qualities. He won 58.4% of his duels (154 contested) and 62.9% of his aerial duels (35) in European competition for Olympiacos, success rates which are 5% and 12% above his positional average. “I fight for every duel,” he told the club’s in-house media after signing. “I’m fast, I’m strong and I like to run.”

Against Leverkusen in this season’s Champions League group phase, he headed in the opener in an eventual 2-0 win, covering 11.5km in that match with 12 sprints, the second-most of any Olympiacos player, and recorded 11 clearances as the German side flooded the box with crosses to no avail.

He has a good habit of freeing himself from his marker at attacking corners, which is how he scored against Leverkusen, and registered 17 shots in 16 European games — the capacity to pop up with a chance is a theme at Brighton, who had eight different players score three-plus Premier League goals last season.

It’s been a steady rise to the Premier League for the 26-year-old. He played for Porto and Braga in his youth career before breaking through at Rio Ave, where he caught the eye as a wing-back in the 2023/24 campaign, with his 11 goal involvements (five goals and six assists, including three out of three from the penalty spot) earning him a spot in the team of the season.

Straight down to business... 😤 pic.twitter.com/zqaFrgTy18
— Brighton & Hove Albion (@OfficialBHAFC) July 13, 2026

His signing gives Hurzeler options at right-back. Mats Wieffer has grown into the role as a converted central midfielder, shining with underlapping runs and real physical intensity, while Joel Veltman brought plenty of experience and defensive nous, but left the club this summer after six years.

Profile wise, Costinha is a mix of the two. He’s got a good range of passing in the final third, showing particularly tidy footwork when one-v-one and plenty of composure. Last season he ranked third among Olympiacos players for clearances (57), with only first-choice centre-backs Lorenzo Pirola and Panagiotis Retsos registering more, while his 40 tackles were bettered by just two teammates — Lorenzo Scipioni (41) and Santiago Hezze (47).

Considering that opponents only completed 133 crosses into Brighton’s box last season, the third-fewest behind teams facing Manchester City (116) and Arsenal (90), and that Hurzeler’s side led the Premier League for final-third regains (192), Costinha looks to be a really smart acquisition.