Twenty league goals and seven assists was what Diego Costa managed for Chelsea in the English top flight last season – a decent haul, but evidently not enough to persuade Antonio Conte to keep him on board.
Deemed surplus to requirements in recent days, Costa has found himself seeking employment elsewhere. However, it’s unlikely the Brazilian-born striker will have a hard time finding a new home for himself at another club. After all, he is a top-quality striker.
Linked with La Liga outfit Atletico Madrid in recent weeks, Costa could find a return to a former club. But, should he team up with Los Colchoneros or should he wait for a better offer?
#1 Atleti transfer ban limits their prospects
The news at the beginning of the month that Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid have been hit with a lengthy transfer ban, upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, means that they will not be able to sign new players until January 2018 – including Costa.
Six months might not seem all that far away, but in football terms by the time he would be eligible to team up with them, a third of a season would have passed and Costa would be coming in cold, more than likely shackled with the expectation of having ready-made goals to help out in Atleti’s title challenge.
The responsibility of arriving poised to bag a hatful of strikes to boost a team’s silverware hopes would not daunt the fearless Costa, but it would mean he would not have much time to settle in, get a few games under his belt to understand the system and acclimatize – he would have to slot in seamlessly from the get-go.
Moreover, it would mean that Atleti might have to rush though several other new transfers in a short period of time, thereby unsettling their stability further still.
Essentially, the transfer ban could not have come at a worse time for Costa – it shakes everything up and makes it very difficult for the imposing centre-forward to clearly see what position Atleti might be in by the time he would be able to join. But there are other opportunities awaiting...
#2 China would offer him more wages...and time to best plot next move
It could either offer him a short stop-over as he mulls over his most suitable option, or it could become a long-term destination.
More and more big stars are being lured away to the Chinese Super League, and despite what some pundits might have you believe, it’s not actually an invisible league with no exposure and rubbish quality.
It’s actually a decent platform with incredible facilities, top-of-the-range stadiums and training facilities, plus their matches are televised live on Sky Sports and scouts and coaches-in-the-know do actually keep tabs on the best of the best over there.
The Chinese market is expanding and becoming increasingly attractive with every passing day. Stars are not packing up and moving there on a whim, and it’s definitely a much better option than heading to the MLS.
So, Costa would actually be in a good position over there.
However, it doesn’t seem as though his heart is set on a move to the CSL, but if he does go there, he would be wise to settle in for at least a season to make the most of it before deciding on somewhere more permanent.
#3 Arsenal, Manchester United represent silverware hopes and long-term future
This wouldn’t go down too well with Blues fans, but quite frankly, Costa needs to do what suits him, and a move to either Arsenal or Manchester United could be exactly what he needs.
In particular, Manchester United look the more attractive option. The Red Devils will be battling on all fronts next season – in the league, both cups and, most importantly of all, in the Champions League – so Costa would get the opportunity to play in Europe’s premier club competition.
Plus, it’s hard to forget how Costa sang Jose Mourinho’s praises a few short weeks ago for the way he helped him improve as a player during their time together at Chelsea when he described the Portuguese coach as ‘one of the best’. The pair could dovetail magnificently at Old Trafford.
As for Arsenal, although they will be without UCL action next year, Wenger is on the lookout for a prolific talisman who can improve their offensive threat and Costa would fit that bill perfectly.
Plus, unlike Atletico, Wenger can have a much-improved squad assembled by the end of August, ready for a new season, and that would put them in a much better place to challenge in a wide-open league, with Costa potentially arriving in January to give them the shot in the arm they need when other teams are going through the post-Christmas hangover.
#4 High-pressure return could backfire – Costa needs a new challenge
With the Vicente Calderon now gone, the Wanda Metropolitano will take its place for the 2017/18 season.
Costa’s potential 2018 return would mean he would be joining a new era at the club, but things do not always run smoothly when teams enter new stadiums, undergo revolutions and start on the path towards a fresh beginning. There is often turbulence, tough times and a great deal of unrest involved, so Costa would likely have to deal with his fair share of that.
During his time with Atleti, Costa, whose first name was given to him after Maradona, bagged 64 strikes – five more than he got for Chelsea.
Living up to the legacy he helped create there, as well as the memories he brought to the fans alongside his then strike partner Radamel Falcao by claiming four pieces of silverware (including La Liga), would be a tough ask.
Ultimately, he would be measured against those successes, and with Real Madrid looking set to dominate Spanish football for years to come, that might not be realistically feasible.
#5 Costa needs to play uninterrupted football for World Cup inclusion
Settling for Atleti now would probably mean he would have to join someone else temporarily for the next five or six months, which would mean a lot of moving around, settling, getting unsettled again as well as adjusting to different cultures and lifestyles...it would be pretty hectic.
Plus, even if his transfer back to Madrid was greenlit, he might not be guaranteed regular minutes by January, either.
According to Eurosport, Alexandre Lacazette could still snub some of his suitors to join Atletico this summer (despite the ban) which would mean that Costa, should he join, would have to compete with him, Fernando Torres, Antoine Griezmann and Angel Correa for regular minutes.
If things didn’t click from the get-go, Costa could slip down the pecking roder and that would be disastrous for a striker who will be fighting for every minute of playing time he can get as he looks to nail down a place on the Spanish squad plane heading to Russia for the World Cup next summer.