I swear, foul-mouthed Costa had to go
REFEREE Gil Manzano has revealed the phrase that got Diego Costa sent off after 28 minutes of Atletico Madrid’s match with Barcelona. According to the official report, Costa told him: ‘I s*** on your whore mother.’ This reminded of waiting for Mark Dennis in the car park at The Dell after one of his many dismissals for Southampton in the Eighties. On this occasion, it was for dissent. He stopped and we asked exactly what had happened. Dennis recalled a contentious offside going against him. ‘I turned to the ref,’ he explained, ‘and I said to him, “You f****** stupid c***, you f****** blind t***”.’ He paused for a moment of reflection. ‘Course I had to go, didn’t I?’ One hopes Costa is blessed with similar insight.