CUIABANO – 21 – LB – Botafogo
Luis Eduardo Soares da Silva, known as Cuiabano, is a physical, two-way left back with masses of potential. The young Brazilian wasn’t utilised properly while at Gremio due to the manager favouring older players. He’s since moved to Botafogo and has hit the ground running. Whilst I will reserve my own judgement on this, some fans have likened his style to that of a certain Brazilian left back who went on to win four La Liga titles, three Champions League titles and a World Cup. Any guesses?
Cuiabano is what I’d refer to as a two-way player, meaning he is equally adept at his defensive role as he is at his attacking role within a team. His physicality helps him in both aspects. The kid is a bit of a juggernaut and he uses his strength often to dispossess the opposition. In one-on-one situations this makes him a massive obstacle when compounded with the timing of his tackles. I’ve rarely seen wingers glide by him, and if they do he generally makes the ground up by leveraging some form of physical contact to slow them down or knock them off balance to be able to get himself in a good position to recover the ball.
The former Brazilian U20 player is also an extremely competent presser of the ball, especially higher up the pitch. This ability leads to a lot of high value turnovers in areas where attacks can be started instantaneously. Whilst further back, he revels in the role of pressing and disrupting the flow of an attack, allowing teammates to recover or become directly involved in the defensive phases of the game.
Whilst he doesn’t hold blistering speed, Cuiabano has a decent turn of pace and a pretty good top speed once he’s opened up, albeit a fairly unorthodox gait. But he’s such a powerful runner that when he’s shoulder to shoulder he tends to come out on top of most battles. And in the opposite direction this also means he’s a nightmare to get the ball off. This leads to him winning a lot of foot races and battles that seem lost, offensively and defensively.
Off the ball, he’s a strong overlapper and takes up good position further up the pitch. He’s more than capable of beating a man and he has quick feet as an added luxury, but he tends to favour early crosses – which I personally love – which are a nuisance to defenders having to turn and face goal. His delivery is on point and the crosses he plays have plenty of variety, too. Low, high, whether it be a teasing cross, a driven one or a floated ball, he can hit the front or back post with relative success, but he always makes the defenders work. In general, his passing – especially deeper – is simplistic, in that he is happy to get the ball, play a short pass and move further up the pitch without taking too much risk.
One of the glaring similarities between Cuiabano and Roberto Carlos is they both have a rocket of a left boot. Cuiabano has bust the onion bag a few times in his career and he’s not afraid to hit them when gifted the opportunity. The young Brazilian takes set pieces, too. Specifically corners from the right hand side, but he also gets involved in free kicks dependent on where they are on the pitch. Direct free kicks around the box are something he salivates at. And from what I’ve seen, Cuiabano is better at finding a teammate from corners than we have been in recent years, so something to stew on there.
In summary, Cuiabano is very much a team player, who’s work rate never falters. He can play adeptly in both the defensive and attacking phases of the game and he’s an absolute powerhouse with a ceiling that’s far beyond the Brazilian Campeonato. I expect Europe in his near future and I think Leeds would be a good move for him to move up the footballing ladder.
Valued at only £1.7m by transfermarkt, that’s surely a minimal risk worth taking for a player with current ability and sky high potential. Personally, I think Serie A may be his next move – especially with Torino interest from January – but rest assured, he’s a player who will most definitely be playing in Europe and a top league in the coming years.
Author – Ryan Thomas.