PortuGOAL Figure of the Week: Vasco Botelho da Costa | OneFootball

Moreirense currently sit third in Liga Portugal, surprisingly ahead of the likes of Benfica and Braga.

Only Gil Vicente have managed to take points away from the Minho outfit, with Rio Ave becoming the latest victims to leave Moreira de Cónegos empty-handed, losing 3-1.

In 2018/19, Madeiran manager Ivo Vieira led Moreirense to their best-ever sixth place finish, and 36-year-old head coach Vasco Botelho da Costa will undoubtedly be aiming to replicate that historic campaign.

Costa told reporters: “Good or bad, in the subconscious of players, there is always a slight mistrust when we have three or four negative results in a row. This [sequence of four wins in five] encourages us, but I don’t want results to be the only thing to guide what we do.

“We haven’t reached half of our potential in terms of quality of play, yet.”

Part of the latest generation of promising Portuguese managers (including the likes of Luís Pinto, João Pereira, Vítor Matos and Ruben Amorim), this is the story of PortuGOAL’s latest Figure of the Week. Kevin Fernandes reports.

The rise of the ‘Pilot’

While most young football fanatics dream of playing at the highest level, Vasco Botelho da Costa started his career in coaching at just 17 years of age, gaining experience across the youth ranks of local side GDS Cascais.

After seven years, Costa jumped across to Estoril Praia, where he notably led the Canarinhos’ U-23 side to unprecedented back-to-back Liga Revelação and Taça Revelação titles.

In 2022, União de Leiria had seen enough and offered Vasco his first opportunity at the helm of a senior side in professional football.

The result? A Liga 3 title and promotion to Liga Portugal 2, his tenure cut prematurely due to disputes with the board.

Leiria’s loss was Alverca’s gain, as Vinicius Junior’s club from Ribatejo were promoted in their first season back in the second tier.

Five titles and two promotions for the 36-year-old aligned with the long-term project of Moreirense, recently acquired by the Black Night Football Club fund, led by American billionaire Bill Foley, also owner of Bournemouth.

The ‘Pilot’ is already flying high.

Botelho da Costa’s style of play

Vasco Botelho da Costa’s forward-thinking 433 has been widely praised in Portugal.

In build-up, his initial 4+1 shape requires full-backs to typically sit lower, creating space for technically refined midfielders and wingers, resulting in his sides preferring short combinations rather than relying on longer, direct escapes.

Full-backs Dinis Pinto and Francisco Domingues (known as Kiko) are versatile, combining well with their wing partners, capable of inverting or forming a five-man back-line when appropriate, which a pattern that has been repeated in all of his sides.

Vasco looks to empower his players, giving them great freedom in the attacking options they make, where taking on defenders and charging forward with the ball is encouraged, allowing for fluid movement (triangulations, third man and aggressive, line-breaking movements are critical to his style of play).

Alan’s fluid attacking midfield role encapsulates this, capable of floating and causing nightmares to confused markers, either playing closer to the selfless centre-forward Guilherme Schettine or supporting Moreirense’s plethora of quality midfield options (Mateja Stjepanović, Lawrence Ofori, Afonso Assis, Bernardo Martins).

Defensively, Costa’s 442 (out of possession) look to force play wide, with his midfield three tasked with cutting passing lanes and providing balance in man-to-man, calculated pressing efforts.

Central defenders Marcelo and Maracás are dependable box defenders, allowing Moreirense to sit deeper and absorb pressure when required.

Vasco Botelho da Costa’s teams excel in offensive transitions, with his ‘green and whites’ boasting multiple players with great technical quality (Vasco Sousa, Cedric Teguia) and decision-making (Alan, Kiko Bondoso).

Moreirense are certainly a side to watch throughout this 2025/26 Liga Portugal campaign, where more success will surely make Vasco Botelho da Costa one of the hottest properties among a plethora of promising young Portuguese coaches.