Nuno Miguel da Costa Jóia (; born 10 February 1991), known as Nuno da Costa, is a Cape Verdean professional footballer who plays as a forward or winger for club Antalyaspor and the Cape Verde national team.
Raised in France, he began his senior career with Aubagne in the fifth tier before moving to Valenciennes of Ligue 2 in 2015. Two years later he debuted in Ligue 1 with Strasbourg, where he won the Coupe de la Ligue in 2019. In January 2020, he signed for Nottingham Forest.
Da Costa scored on his senior international debut for Cape Verde in June 2016.
Club career Early career Born in Praia, Cape Verde, Da Costa was raised in Portugal from 1993 and began playing with U.R. Mercês in Lisbon. He then moved to Aubagne in southern France, where he started his senior career with Aubagne FC in France's fifth tier.
On 4 January 2014, Da Costa scored the opening goal of a 3–3 draw at home to Ligue 2 club Dijon FCO in the last 64 of the Coupe de France, losing on penalties.
Valenciennes Da Costa joined Valenciennes FC of Ligue 2 on 3 August 2015, following a season of 14 goals and eight assists. In his first professional season, he scored ten goals, including two on 6 May 2016 in a 4–1 win away to relegated Paris FC. He followed this with nine more in his second year, including a brace in a 3–3 home draw with FC Bourg-Peronnas on 18 November.
Strasbourg On 3 July 2017, Da Costa signed a four-year deal with Ligue 1 club RC Strasbourg, replacing Khalid Boutaïb who had left for Malatyaspor. In his first top-flight season he found the net five times, including both goals of a 2–1 win at OGC Nice on 22 October that earned him a place in L'Équipes team of the week. On 4 November, he was sent off after half an hour of a 2–0 loss at Troyes AC.
Da Costa was an 81st-minute substitute for Lebo Mothiba as they won the 2019 Coupe de la Ligue Final on penalties against EA Guingamp on 30 March. Four days later, he scored twice in a 4–0 win over Stade Reims at the Stade de la Meinau, part of his eight of the season. After that game, former France international Daniel Bravo described Da Costa's goal as "not bad for a black guy" during his beIN Sports punditry; he apologised in person for offence caused to the player, who accepted the apology.
Nottingham Forest On 29 January 2020, Da Costa joined EFL Championship club Nottingham Forest. The length and cost of the deal was not disclosed. He debuted on 11 February in a 1–0 home loss to Charlton Athletic, playing the last twenty minutes in place of Ryan Yates; days later he was injured in an under-23 game against Crewe Alexandra.
Da Costa was loaned to Belgian First Division A side Royal Excel Mouscron for the season on 5 October 2020, with the option to make the deal permanent. He scored six goals during his stint, including both of a 2–2 home draw with OH Leuven on 15 December.
On 31 August 2021, Da Costa was loaned out again for a year, returning to the French Ligue 2 at Caen.
Auxerre On 5 August 2022, Da Costa joined Ligue 1 side AJ Auxerre.
Kasımpaşa On 12 September 2023, Da Costa signed for Turkish Süper Lig side Kasımpaşa. The duration of the contract and transfer fee were both undisclosed.
International career Da Costa made his international debut for Cape Verde on 4 June 2016 in a 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification match away to São Tomé and Príncipe. He came on in the 73rd minute for Garry Rodrigues, and six minutes later scored in a 2–1 win. He did not play again until the return of manager Rui Águas on 9 September 2018, in a 1–1 draw away to Lesotho in the unsuccessful 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification campaign.
On 18 May 2026, he was called up by Cape Verde's head coach Bubista for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/articles/cabo-verde-squad-announcement-world-cup-bubistahttps://www.beinsports.com/en-us/soccer/fifa-world-cup-2026/articles/bubista-s-official-cabo-verde-squad-for-the-2026-fifa-world-cup-2026-05-19
Career statistics
Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupContinentalTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAubagne2012–13CFA 220400——2042013–14CFA 221421——2352014–15CFA 2251400——2514Total66222100006823Valenciennes II2015–16CFA 240———40Valenciennes2015–16Ligue 223101000—24102016–17Ligue 22291010—249Total45192010004819Strasbourg2017–18Ligue 12652200—2872018–19Ligue 13482030—3982019–20Ligue 114100115Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League0202Total74144241508717Strasbourg II2017–18National 311———11Nottingham Forest2019–20EFL Championship1000000—1002020–21EFL Championship200010—302021–22EFL Championship000010—10Total1200020—140Mouscron (loan)2020–21First Division A2560000—256Caen (loan)2021–22Ligue 22491100—2510Auxerre2022–23Ligue 13353100—3662023–24Ligue 2500000—50Total3853100—416Kasımpaşa2023–24Süper Lig291420——31142024–25Süper Lig291300——2913Total582720——6027İstanbul Başakşehir2025–26Süper Lig263326Appearance(s) in UEFA Conference League1—356Antalyaspor2026–27TFF 1. Lig3100——31Career total37610717713250411116
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsCape Verde201611201820202520202691Total142
Scores and results list Cape Verde's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each da Costa goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Nuno da CostaNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 4 June 2016 Estádio Nacional 12 de Julho, São Tomé, São Tomé and Principe 2–0 2–1 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification2 6 June 2026 Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field, East Hartford, United States 3–0 3–0 Friendly
Honours Strasbourg Coupe de la Ligue: 2018–19
References
External links