Brazil born Spanish striker Diego Costa is entering his third season at Chelsea, even though he has constantly been linked with a move back to Spain for the past year. Now, his former manager Diego Simeone has admitted that Atletico Madrid were keen to bring their former star back to the Vicente Calderon.
Temperamental striker Diego Costa has been a fiery addition to the Premier League since he joined Chelsea in the summer of 2014 for £32 million. However, after a sparkling first season, the Spaniard endured a frustrating campaign last time around which fueled rumors that he would like to move back to Atletico.
New manager Antonio Conte is keen to hold on to the player though, and Atletico manager Diego Simeone has recently opened up about the club’s failure to lure Costa away from Stamford Bridge.
“The club worked on the possibility of Diego Costa’s arrival and after that did not advance, we were always very clear with Gameiro. Always,” Simeone told Spanish programme Espacio Reservado, according to the Daily Mail.
“When I spoke on the phone with him (Gameiro), I told him we wanted to bring Costa and he was the alternative.
“I bet entirely on him and he wanted to be the forward to join us this year.”
Chelsea won the game 2-1. (Photo credit: Justin Tallis/AFP/Getty Images)
Atletico Madrid have constantly been linked with a move for Diego Costa, but have recently signed French striker Kevin Gameiro from their La Liga rivals Sevilla. This means that it is unlikely that Los Rojiblancos are still keen to sign Diego Costa.
Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has repeatedly tried to play up rumours of Diego Costa’s return to the La Liga side, and that has left the Premier League side livid. Chelsea had issued a ‘hands off’ warning a few weeks ago, and the signing of Gameiro has conclusively ended the speculation.
Costa is said to be earning a neat salary of £150,000 a week and is contracted with the club till 2019. The 27-year-old has got off to a fruitful start in the Premier League this season, scoring the winning goal against West Ham United. However he once again hinted that he is unhappy in England after the match, and this will fuel speculation once again if he fails to perform for the Blues this season.
