San Jose: The scout who found Neymar is coming to MLS
By Dylan Walsh
Neymar, you may have heard of him? The Brazilian winger is one of the most well-known athletes in the world and one of the best players in the world of soccer, and the man who found the now Brazilian captain is heading to MLS.
Brazilian youth scout, Bruno Costa, has been recruited by the San Jose Earthquakes as their new head of scouting. Costa previously worked under the Brazilian Football Confederation to help the various youth teams in the Brazilian program recruit young, promising players for the youth set up.
Exciting times for San Jose
Speaking to the official San Jose Earthquakes website, manager Jesse Fioranelli said
"Bruno is a fantastic addition to our organization, having worked in the competitive Serie A and with the most successful national team in international soccer.Our goal was to hire an experienced scout that knows the U.S. and the international talent markets. As we develop a comprehensive player scouting and development program across Quakes teams, Bruno will focus on prospects in the Bay Area as much as he will cover U.S. and select markets in Europe and Latin America."
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A wealth of experience
During his time with the Brazilian football governing body, Costa helped recruit the likes of Neymar, Coutinho, Willian, and Gabriel Jesus to the international teams, as well as to some of the biggest clubs in Brazil where these four stars made their names.
Costa initially joined the BFC as a manager for the various Brazilian youth national teams in 2001, where he won an incredible 14 trophies with the Seleção, including the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship and the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship, making Brazil the first and only nation to win both tournaments in the same year.
Costa is no stranger to life in America, though. Costa attended IMG Academy in Florida during his youth, where he played Division I soccer, and the Brazilian native returned to the States in 2015 to become assistant manager and head of scouting for NASL side, Fort Lauderdale Strikers.
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It will be interesting to see what sort of talent the scout can bring to the MLS and specifically San Jose.