Chelsea FC: Jose Mourinho Passed On Signing Diego Costa At Braga

Chelsea FC striker Diego Costa burst on to the scene in 2012 when he scored 20 goals in his second season in the Atletico Madrid squad. At that point he was still playing second fiddle to Radamel Falcao but proved that he could be the main man for Atletico. Last season he was their primary striker and responded with 36 goals in 52 appearances.

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Before last season he was a little known Brazilian forward who bounced around Portugal and Spain and had trouble settling at any one club after he joined SC Braga as a teenager. He eventually would sign with Atletico but was loaned out and sold before making his return to the Spanish capital. Jose Mourinho even revealed that he checked out the forward when he was at Braga but passed on signing him.

"“To be fair when he was in Portugal I had a look at him, so everybody was blind, including myself. He can be [a star], yes I know. He’s still the guy that comes from a very small village behind the sunset. His village is behind the sunset – you want to arrive there, and it’s difficult to arrive. He’s still that guy. He’s still that guy, the way he behaves, the way he acts, the way he interacts, he’s still that naive, pure, simple, humble guy.”Source: Sky Sports"

Now we have no idea whether or not Mourinho is telling the truth but it does make sense that Chelsea’s scouting department would let the manager know about Diego Costa. At the time he was still a very raw talent and was not Chelsea quality. This was also before Chelsea’s tactics of buying every good young talent in Europe so it makes sense for them to pass on signing him.

Today it is a completely different story. Jose Mourinho revealed that he identified Diego Costa as his striker of the future last January but could not sign him until the summer. He backs Costa to become the newest star of Stamford Bridge despite his humble beginnings and if the preseason is any indicator then he is well on his way to doing so.

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