Diego Costa “did everything he could” for Atlético Madrid return last summer

It is little consolation but at least we know that Diego Costa really did want to come back to Atlético Madrid last summer and said he did everything he could in order to make it happen.

In an interview with El Larguero, Costa admitted to his Atlético ambition but that they club didn’t wait for him long enough.

“When Atlético didn’t wait for me, I had to go to Conte with my tail between my legs,” Costa said before indicating that he would not fight like that again.

During a summer in which Atlético really needed a striker, Costa was the primary target and many thought it might happen. Luciano Vietto was on the way to Sevilla, Jackson Martínez was already gone and Fernando Torres was the only striker along with Antoine Griezmann, who plays in a role further back than a true number nine.

Atleti were changing their style slightly, and you would have to think that Diego Simeone wanted to bring someone in to show them the ropes, and while there was a still a month to go in the transfer window when they bought Kévin Gameiro, Costa believes that Atleti should have not been so afraid and trusted that he would figure out a way to leave Chelsea.

It never happened though and Costa was forced back to Conte in search of forgiveness. It worked, as he has scored 17 goals in 26 games for Chelsea this season and regained his place in the Spanish national team squad, with Chelsea also looking for a league title and a possible FA Cup too.