Hélder Costa arrival can provide extra gear for Bielsa’s Leeds
Leeds’ transformation under Marcelo Bielsa last summer could hardly have gone better. With only a few new recruits, the Argentine transformed a misshapen squad with no real identity into one of the Championship’s most well-functioning units.
Bielsa’s personality shone through his team —the commitment to attack, the intensity and outright aggression produced some of the most memorable performances in recent Leeds history. Yet for as much as the work of the 63-year-old impacted those who watched on, it’s possible that Elland Road is still yet to play host to the full Marcelo Bielsa experience.
Last Wednesday, Leeds gave themselves another chance to get there. The arrival of Hélder Costa from Wolves, signed on a season-long loan and a further four years after that, radically alters the threshold for what Bielsa’s attacking group can achieve in 2019–20.
For the reported £15 million transfer fee (to be paid next summer), you would expect that. But it also speaks to the air of possibility currently surrounding Leeds. The club know this is their best opportunity to win promotion in many years — they probably also know this is the last we’ll see of Bielsa if not. And so Leeds find themselves in the midst of a crucial summer, where the prospect of not striking on transfer targets would be as grave as ever.
In the form of Hélder Costa — through the size of financial commitment and the urgency of the club’s recruitment needs — the Whites have moved towards what they believe is a guarantee.
Leeds played with searing intensity for most of last season, but they lacked the usual speed and explosiveness in attack that Bielsa’s teams have long been characterised by. Many of his best hits in management have been propelled by high-volume dribblers wreaking havoc on the wings, while even his less successful plans at Lille were still heavily rooted in direct wide play.
As the individual in the Leeds squad who most naturally represents Bielsa’s footballing outlook — dynamic, direct and ambitious in attack — the arrival of Costa is an immediate remedy to where they were caught short last season. The Portuguese is a skilled ball-carrier who can be effective both in individual duels from wide areas, as well as drifting centrally to combine with teammates. Costa’s previous two seasons in the Championship have seen him average 5.4 dribbles per 90, with a completion rate of 48%.
If we compare that with Leeds’ two starting wide players from last season — Jack Harrison (2.9 dribbles at 36%) and Pablo Hernández (2.6 dribbles at 42%) — we can clearly see how replicating Bielsa’s usual directness of attack would be compromised, and where Costa should immediately provide a solution.
The key to the Portuguese’s game, however, is the variety of attacking tools he possesses. Costa’s ball-carrying ability is a weapon in itself, but it’s enhanced by the fact that he is not reliant on it to influence play. The 25-year-old has a blend of physical and technical qualities that are rare at Championship level.
This is a dilemma for opposing full-backs, who must contend with the fact Costa is a player who forces defensive attention in a number of different ways, and certainly to a greater degree than Leeds’ wingers could last season.
Because of this, Costa is constantly threatening multiple risks for his opponent. With his speed threatening passes behind the back line and quick escapes from his marker, defenders must be wary of not getting too close. Yet they also can’t afford to let him receive the ball comfortably, where he can have time to select a pass or gather momentum dribbling. Leeds had some of these weapons in their squad last term, but not within the same player.
Costa won’t always be able to pick one or the other, but it’s the threat of multiple attributes which creates the doubt that will aid Leeds’ chances of creating dangerous situations.
Another quality that Costa adds to Leeds’ ranks is the ability to progress the ball in transition. The Whites were an accomplished pressing team in 2018–19, although their opportunities to strike on the counter were limited by their lack of pace and individual directness. With Costa around, Leeds have a player that will allow for a quicker counter-punch; sparing the need to constantly build collective attacks that were more prone to breaking down.
Further to Costa’s variety of play as a winger, his impact is not as easily diminished as closing down space in wide areas. The 25-year-old has performed exceptionally in both of his previous Championship seasons, scoring and assisting at a high rate for a winger, but with differences in the way he achieved the two.
In his first Wolves season in 2016–17, Costa was used largely as an orthodox winger, doing the majority of his work from wide areas. Acting as the key man in a struggling side, he directly contributed to a team-high 18 goals, with 13 of them coming from open play.
The following season under Nuno Espírito Santo, the Portuguese international was used much more freely from the same starting position. As we can see from the above graphic, Costa’s received passes were less rooted to the wing and more diverse by their location. This produced more combinations and intricate central actions from the Portuguese, as well the functioning of a strong relationship with Wolves wing-back Matt Doherty — a player similar to Luke Ayling in terms of his aggressive attacking approach from a wing-back position.
Despite the shift in style of play from the wing — combining much more central actions with that of his default wide play — the result from Costa was much more of the same. He contributed to a further 11 goals from open play, while doing so at a higher rate by his per 90 average (0.51).
While contributing to goals at steady rate, Costa’s previous two seasons at Championship level have also been very efficient in front of goal. Among wingers who averaged two or more shots per 90 across the 2016–17 and 2017–18 campaigns, only Jarrod Bowen and Diogo Jota posted a higher shot conversion rate than Costa (14%).
Rather than this strictly labelling him as a competent finisher, it more reliably suggests that Costa is able to get himself into good shooting positions on a regular basis. And taking into account Leeds’ struggles to convert chances last season, it’s imperative that goals from the striker be supplemented by those from other attacking positions.
For the sum of all his attacking qualities, Costa would have projected as a leading transfer target on that basis alone. The other big plus for Leeds in terms of evaluating him is that, not only has he been a leading performer in his position in his previous two campaigns in the Championship, those two seasons were contrasting on both an individual and collective level.
In 2016–17, his first season in English football, Costa adapted quickly to become the key player in what was a disappointing season for Wolves. They finished 15th, with more defeats than victories. Without Costa’s impact — where he drove the team successfully, fighting against the tide despite limited assistance from elsewhere — the team would have been precariously close to the relegation picture.
The need for Costa’s individual inspiration was less pressing in 2017–18, as he represented one of many parts in a title-winning team. His position in the team was constantly threatened by Wolves’ strong attacking options, while Nuno Espírito Santo enforced a strong culture where every player had to be committed and adherent to the collective needs of the team. Having flourished in both environments, the latter is what he will find with Marcelo Bielsa and Leeds.
After a season in the Premier League where he struggled to match his Championship output and eventually found himself on the outside of an evolved Wolves system, Costa returns to the Championship with proven star quality at this level, shadowed by a manager who will demand more from him than any he has ever worked with.
For Leeds, the best version of the 25-year-old is a key that might finally fit the lock of Premier League promotion. And together, Costa and Leeds stand well-positioned to drive their redemptions through one another.
(Stats via Opta / clips and graphics via InStat)
