Diego Costa unlikely to “achieve legendary status” by finishing his career at Chelsea

Former Chelsea player Kerry Dixon said Diego Costa could become a club legend. All he needs to do is the one thing that seems increasingly improbable: finish his career as a Blue.

Diego Costa’s consistent scoring keeps him in the fans’ good graces even when the rest of his game is neither consistent nor graceful. His form has been sub-par in recent weeks, and the impressions of his row with Antonio Conte amid transfer rumours to China remain fresh in Chelsea’s mind. But the goals keep coming, so much is forgiven.

Ex-Blue Kerry Dixon recognizes that Costa has many of the attributes that go into being a club legend. Costa has the output and passion (when appropriately channeled) to remain a fan favourite. He only needs to remain at Chelsea to write himself into the club’s history books.

"You have to serve your time and prove yourself to the fans and be consistent over the years. You don’t come here for two or three years and become a legend… I hope he does go on and achieve legendary status at the club by staying and seeing out his career. – Evening Standard"

That seems to be an increasingly unlikely prospect for Diego Costa, though. His mid-season happiness, fueled by Chelsea’s win streak, ended at about the same time. The rumours of a massive transfer bid from China precipitated the incident at the training ground with Conte and the fitness staff.

Costa’s form since then has been inconsistent. He and Antonio Conte do not share the same emotional post-match moments. And despite the club saying in January that they were preparing to renegotiate his contract, no such talks have occurred. Conte recently tabled the issue when it came up at a press conference, saying it was a matter for the post-season.

"I think Antonio Conte has made up his mind, he’s just too smart of a poker player to admit it at the moment… Nothing about Costa’s attitude bodes well with Antonio Conte. Conte was known as his loyalty as a player. – Barrett Rouen, The Blue Lions"

Unlike at the beginning of this season, Conte will have plenty of time to consider his options at striker over the summer – and plenty of options to boot. Conte had very little time between Euro 2016 and the end of the transfer window to build his squad. One consequence of that was the misfire purchase of Michy Batshuayi. Conte had little choice but to retain Costa and all but guarantee his place in the lineup.

Over the summer, Tammy Abraham and Bertrand Traore will return from successful loan spells. Conte will also have a large purse, a full transfer window and a berth in the Champions League to attract new players. Romelu Lukaku, Alvaro Morata and Paulo Dybala are among the top prospects to absorb the money earned from selling Oscar.

Antonio Conte’s advantages in building his squad will diminish Diego Costa’s importance to the team. If Costa remains temperamental or Conte judges him too self-absorbed, Costa no longer has any leverage. He will become as replaceable as anyone else in Chelsea’s squad. But unlike his teammates, he is more likely to move to China than fight his way off the bench onto the pitch.

Kerry Dixon is right that Costa has much the making of a Chelsea legend. However, Costa must do more than just ride out his time in Blue.

Next: Antonio Conte frankly addresses the Michy Batshuayi situation

Other coaches may tolerate Costa’s negatives in exchange for his goal-scoring. Conte will have the opportunity and means to replace Costa’s offense and rid himself of the negatives. Costa’s time will be memorable, but not legendary.