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At the age of 22, Brazilian winger Samuel Lino is ready to take the next step in his professional career. After moving to Europe in 2019 to join Portuguese side Gil Vicente, he is now making the jump to LaLiga Santander after signing a contract until 2027 with Atlético de Madrid and then joining Valencia CF on loan for the 2022/23 season.
The capital city side would have kept him if they could, as Lino has impressed Diego Simeone and his coaching staff during the pre-season workouts held since his transfer from Gil Vicente was completed in the first week of July. However, Atleti didn’t have enough space in their squad for another non-EU player and looked for a domestic partner where he could spend the 2022/23 campaign continuing his development.
That partner was Valencia CF, with Gennaro Gattuso keen to bring in a player of Lino’s quality and characteristics. The Italian coach looks set to use a 4-3-3 system at Mestalla this campaign and the Brazilian fits in perfectly. He is right-footed and can make an impact on the right wing, but he is even better as an inverted winger coming off the left to dribble his way past defenders. He has even played at centre-forward on occasion, given his skill at putting the ball in the back of the net.
Over his time at Gil Vicente, he scored 26 goals in 99 appearances. Naturally, his most recent season was his best yet, as he scored 12 goals and shared out five assists in Portugal’s top division. That meant the winger was directly involved in more than a third of his side’s 47 goals last term.
Lino’s evolution has been impressive. He was born in Santo André and grew up in São Bernardo, two municipalities in the state of São Paulo, and started off playing futsal. That saw him develop a unique set of skills, which ultimately earned him a place in the academy of São Bernardo FC when he made the switch to playing 11-a-side association football.
In 2017, aged 17, he made his debut for the São Bernardo FC first team and earned a transfer to Flamengo later that year. Even if he didn’t stay with the Río de Janeiro side long, that experience shaped Lino. He has admitted that being so far away from home saw him struggle physiologically, but that this ultimately made him stronger.
This is how he was able to make the move all the way to Europe in 2019 when the chance to join Gil Vicente arose. The club were playing in the Portuguese third tier at the time, and Lino was a little hesitant when he searched for the club’s name on Google and they didn’t even appear, but a legal victory meant they were returning to the top tier for the 2019/20 season. From there, Lino thrived, supported by his teammates in a squad that was made up of many Brazilians.
Before long, he stood out as one of the most talented players in that squad and in the entire league, piquing the interest of several top European clubs. Atlético de Madrid won the race for his signature and Lino was thrilled to join Los Rojiblancos, stating: “I follow Spanish football a lot and, when Atlético de Madrid’s interest appeared, I started to watch even more games and videos of the team. I have ambitious goals and, like every Brazilian player, I want to make play for the national team. I want to play in the Champions League too and win it. I want to play with the best and achieve many things.”
That ambition is a cause for optimism for fans of Atlético de Madrid and also for the Valencia CF supporters who’ll be able to enjoy this talented winger over the next year.
