Atletico Madrid have not given up in their pursuit of former striker Diego Costa, with the Spaniards set to tempt Chelsea FC with further offers.
Atletico Madrid reportedly approached Chelsea with an audacious bid to bring Diego Costa back to Spain on transfer deadline day. Using Jackson Martinez as a makeweight, the club were trying to take advantage of rumours suggesting that he was unsettled in the English capital.
A deal did not materialise and in the wake of the transfer window, Atletico president Enrique Cerezo has told Spanish radio station Cope that he will try to sign their former striker in the near future.
"We have a great relationship with our past players. Diego is a great player, but a Chelsea player. We will try to do our best and see what Chelsea say, it does not depend on us. We always try to bring the best players and Diego is one of them. – via Fox Sports"
Costa had a torrid time during the first half of the season, as his attitude and commitment to the Blues was questioned. He continually larked about the field, seemingly more interested in starting fights with the opposition than scoring goals. His positioning was awful and there were questions about whether or not he was undermining Jose Mourinho on purpose.
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Some of those questions appear to have been answered as Costa has regained his form under interim manager Guus Hiddink. Costa is now the goalscoring threat he was last season and has toned down the antics to a manageable degree. Some fans choose to believe that Costa was simply being suffocated under Mourinho but many others believe that he has always had this in him and was holding back under the Portuguese manager.
Despite these rumors, there is no solid proof and Costa is still the best striker that Chelsea FC have by some distance. Loic Remy appears disinterested and Alexandre Pato and Radamel Falcao are huge question marks. This means that Chelsea will not give up Costa, if they even do, without putting up a fight.
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A club cannot force a player to stay where he does not want to be, especially in this era of player power, but they can make sure to get every pound out of the deal that they can. The Blues can use the fee they gain from selling a want-away striker towards purchasing someone younger, perhaps more talented, and certainly more willing to fight for a place at Stamford Bridge.
As for Diego Costa, it seems that his heart is still in Madrid with Atletico. They may be facing a transfer ban but they will likely be in the Champions League next season while Chelsea FC will almost certainly will not be. He has also reportedly not taken the time to learn English and there seems to be a story coming out every week about how much he dislikes England.
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For now, we can file this rumor under the “unlikely but not impossible” category as Atletico Madrid will be looking to stock up on talent before their transfer ban comes in to effect next winter. It would be sad to see Diego Costa leave Stamford Bridge while he is still in his prime but the Blues have survived losing more talented, and perhaps more committed, players and thrived.