RC Strasbourg Alsace's dynamic attacker, Nuno da Costa, has certainly had to bide his time for an opportunity to play top flight football, but it's great to see all his hard work is now finally paying off.
Born in the Cape Verdean capital of Praia, da Costa's family made the decison to move to Portugal when he was just a two-year-old, where he'd go onto get his start on his road to becoming a professional footballer. Despite earning the chance to join the coveted Sporting academy at the age of 12, he'd only hone his craft here for one year before his parents opted to move again - this time to France.
Shifting to Marseille to give their family a better life, da Costa's Cape Verdean father and Portuguese mother's decision would ultimately give their son the ideal platform to fulfill his potential. Initially running out for small clubs like Saint Zacharie, Auriol and La Ciotat, joining FC Aubagne as an 18-year-old proved a crucial step in his development.
After diligently going about his work as an amateur for three years at the CFA 2 club, scoring 14 goals and bagging five assists in his fourth season ensured the livewire caught the attention of some pro outfits. This led to trials at Dijon and Evian Thonon Gaillard, but Valenciennes eventually won out for his signature in 2015.
Although he started out on an amateur contract, it didn't take long for him to impress enough to secure himself a professional deal at the Ligue 2 side in March of 2016. "This is the first big step in my life as a footballer, the first step. I had to work hard to get there, mentally especially. I came from the amateur world, I did not have any real training. I had everything to learn," he said on his landmark achievement.
Indeed, this was a fine reward for his successful first campaign at the club, which yielded 10 goals from his 1386 minutes of action. Da Costa then backed this up by finding the back of the net a further nine times in his second season, plus supplying three assists, as his performances duly warranted interest from Ligue 1 clubs.
His fascinating and arduous journey to reach Ligue 1 was finally complete last summer, when, at the age of 26, he joined newly promoted Strasbourg in July. Speaking to the club's official website, the delighted da Costa expressed his gratitude to his new employers and how this move represents the fulfilling of a dream for him. "This is my second and biggest step as a footballer, playing in Ligue 1. It's always been my dream, it's the fruit of a lot of work and sacrifices even if I know that I will have to work even more now," he asserted.
"I will never forget the enormous chance that Strasbourg offers me. I feel indebted to the club for a long time. It motivates me and I will give everything."
Even though Thierry Laurey's team found it tough going in the early stages of the season, only winning one of their first seven matches, they've began to get things back on track with some promising recent results, which include a 3-3 draw with Marseille and a statement 2-1 win over OGC Nice. And da Costa has been key to this, following a challenging start of his own, especially in the latter win, where he bagged a brilliantly taken brace. In a match where he showcased his immense pace, unpredictable dribbling skills, instinctive movement in and around the box and his ability to intelligently time his runs in behind, the languid attacker provided a constant source of menace to Lucien Favre's men.
So good, in fact, was his performance that he was even handed a place in the highly respected L'Equipe team of the week. With such an accomplished showing against one of the best teams in France's elite division, he'll be hoping to build on this outing and go from strength to strength as he continues to adapt to life in Ligue 1.
Da Costa's whirlwind 2017 has only been heightened by the fact he scored Strasbourg's monumental 2800th league goal, making them only the eleventh French side to reach the milestone, and by him recently becoming a proud father.
One man that knew he had what it takes to reach the highest level, but who's still been amazed by his rise, was Frederic Cravero, his former Aubagne coach. "I'm not surprised by his evolution, because he has always had enormous footballing qualities," he insisted. "But I'm surprised by the speed with which he climbed through the levels.
While his journey to the top has definitely been an unorthodox one, da Costa's story should act as an inspiration to many, as his patience, perseverance and mental fortitude to keep chasing his dream has been truly remarkable.
Without doubt, da Costa's fully deserved his shot in the big time.
