GOOD RIDDANCE
Chelsea cash in as Atletico pay £67m for rebel Costa
CHELSEA were celebrating last night when Atletico Madrid finally agreed a deal that ended the Diego Costa saga – and doubled their money on the controversial striker.
The La Liga club will eventually pay about £67million for the Spain striker, who will initially join on loan for the season.
Costa flew into Madrid yesterday to undertake a medical and sign his new fouryear, £150,000-a-week deal, and is set to watch his new club’s home match against
Sevilla tomorrow lunchtime. He may be there again on Wednesday when Atletico return to Champions League action – against Chelsea. Costa, who moved to Stamford Bridge three years ago, cannot play for Atletico until January.
The deal brings to an end a bitter saga that has lasted more than seven weeks, with the forward effectively going on strike, staying in his native Brazil and refusing to return to England to train with Chelsea after being told by text by manager Antonio Conte he was not wanted this season.
Chelsea, who have fined him for each absent week, had demanded he return, get fit and make himself available before any deal could be finalised. But in the end, Atletico’s extraordinary third offer persuaded Chelsea to take the money.
In effect, it has covered the outlay on Costa’s replacement Alvaro Morata.
The problems first arose at the start of the year when Costa was left out of for a match at Leicester after reports of a training-ground dispute with a fitness coach, sparking a toxic spiral in his relationship with the club.
At one point he accused Chelsea of treating him “like a criminal” and threatened legal action to force the move through.