STATS BY KONAMI
Name: Alessandro Costacurta
Nickname: "Billy"
Country:
ItalyClub: AC Milan
Position: *CB, SWP
Side: RF/BS
Age: 24-28 years (24/04/1966)
Height: 182 cm
Weight: 75 kg
Attack: 59
Defence: 94
Balance: 85
Stamina: 79
Top Speed: 76
Acceleration: 72
Response: 85
Agility: 72
Dribble Accuracy: 74
Dribble Speed: 71
Short Pass Accuracy: 77
Short Pass Speed: 75
Long Pass Accuracy: 80
Long Pass Speed: 73
Shot Accuracy: 61
Shot Power: 78
Shot Technique: 61
Free Kick Accuracy: 59
Curling: 62
Header: 84
Jump: 85
Technique: 76
Aggression: 62
Mentality: 85
Goalkeeper Skills: 50
Team Work: 85
Injury Tolerance: A
Condition: 7
Weak Foot Accuracy: 6
Weak Foot Frequency: 6
Consistency: 7
Growth type: Early/Lasting
CARDS:
S08 - Slide Tackle
S09 - Covering
S10 - DF Leader
SPECIAL ABILITIES: Sliding - Covering - D-Line Control
Attack/Defence Awareness Card: Defence Minded
Quote:
The legendary Milan stopper for 20 years. Billy was central defender with long and successful career. Strong and tenacious defender, he compensated with his experience and his sense of positioning, the slight lack of speed and technique, becoming one of the unsurpassed parts in the heart of the Milan defense. As he aged, Costacurta has based his game on the sense of positioning and intercepting. He had tactical intelligence, timing in the interventions, great concentration and determination resources. Despite the lack of pace and even technique, he was good tackler with excellent reading of the game, well timed interventions in defence and he was excellent in marking. Although not particularly tall, he was very powerful player, strong in the air, and could send very precise long passes from defence. But he didn't have some important attacking contribution, since not in possess of some great shot and dribbling. Nevertheless he had decent ball control and could start the attacks with good passes, mainly the long ones. He played as central defender for years but with the arrival of Carlo Ancelotti on the Milan bench (2001), Billy took first moves into the role of full back (mostly due to emergency causes than in technical and tactical choices). Costacurta has been able to settle well with skills and guaranteed performances even in that "atypical" role (especially on the right side), despite the passing of years and the lack of practice at that position didn't help him a lot. His primary role remains that of stopper, where he played the best even with the national team, where he began in 1991 and with whom he played as an undisputed starter until the World Cup in France '98.