10 Reasons for Chelsea Fans to Love Diego Costa
Gone are Chelsea's problems in attack; Diego Costa has arrived on the scene.
Since moving to the Premier League, the Spaniard has made the transformation from Spanish football look easy.
After four games, he has seven goals, becoming the first player in history to hit such a tally so early into his career in England's top flight.
His goalscoring form has put Chelsea in the driving seat early on in the title race, and they now look a formidable force with the ability to outscore and outmuscle any opponent.
Chelsea fans are going to adore him for many reasons, and here Bleacher Report lists 10 of them.
Goals
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Score goals and fans will love you. It's as simple as that.
As we touched upon in our intro slide, Costa has already scored seven in his first four Chelsea games, including a hat-trick against Swansea City in a 4-2 victory.
He is a massive threat, and if his form continues like it is, he's going to need to work on his goal celebrations as we'll be seeing a lot more of them.
Chelsea Are Feared Again
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The goals Diego Costa has scored early in his Chelsea career have done much more than put Chelsea at the top of the Premier League table.
They have made Chelsea feared again.
Teams know that when they come up against the Blues, they are going to have their work cut out to keep a clean sheet.
Not only that, they know they can be blown away by a flurry of goals, as has been the case for Burnley, Leicester City, Everton and Swansea City this season.
The rest of English football is afraid. Very afraid.
Attitude
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Diego Costa is Chelsea's leading goalscorer by a country mile already this season. He is undoubtedly emerging as the star of the new dawn Jose Mourinho is overseeing at Stamford Bridge.
Though you wouldn't know it by watching him play.
Here is a player who works tirelessly for his team-mates, putting in the hard yards and doing his job.
Ultimately, he is selected by Mourinho to score goals, yet he's often found doing his bit defensively, clearing corners and tracking runners.
It's a mark of his attitude, which, thus far, has been impeccable.
He Chose Chelsea over Everyone Else
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With his growing reputation on the European stage, Diego Costa could have had his pick of where to go this summer.
He would have had an unlimited number of suitors from across the continent, all offering riches beyond his imagination, but from the outset his destination was always going to be Chelsea.
There are times a player will use the interest of one club to help force a move to another, yet where the Spaniard was concerned, there were no such tactics.
There weren't any mind games to force through a better deal or cause concern among the Chelsea hierarchy.
Chelsea wanted him, and judging by the way he conducted himself, Costa wanted Chelsea.
Style
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He score goals, yes, but Diego Costa doesn't do it by simply sitting inside the 18-yard box waiting for chances to come his way.
The Spaniard plays a part in everything Chelsea do and is important in allowing the three attacking midfielders behind him to operate effectively.
Costa scores tap-ins, headers, team and solo goals.
He is skilful, deadly and effective, playing with a style not too dissimilar to Didier Drogba.
Chelsea fans will cherish that.
He's a Bully
6 of 10
In any walk of life, bullying is rightly frowned upon—except on the field of play in sports that is.
Fans and coaches of any sport love nothing more than a player who bullies the opposition.
Whether it be mentally or physically, players such as Diego Costa are vital in getting an edge.
In just four games as a Chelsea player, Costa has shown what he is capable of, continuing in much the same way as he finished his Atletico Madrid career.
Indeed, he even attempted to go toe to toe with John Terry in the Champions League semi-final last season, giving Blues fans a glimpse of his character when he squared up with his soon-to-be captain in the heat of battle.
Players such as Costa want to win matches, and along with their talent as footballers, the ability to damage opponents elsewhere is always a quality fans enjoy witnessing in action.
He Can Mix It with the Opposition
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Diego Costa's goals will be a thorn in the side of most teams this seasonas will his ability to rile them.
In Chelsea's 6-3 defeat of Everton before the international break, it appeared a tactic from the Toffees to do anything they could to knock Costa off his game.
Seamus Coleman was the biggest culprit, nudging and pushing him around, and Costa was somehow booked for his troubles.
Everton thought they had the upper hand, but Costa showed they had anything but.
When Coleman scored his own goal to make it 3-1, Costa made sure he goaded his opponent to the point that Tim Howard lost his composure in an attempt to defend his team-mate.
As the image above shows, the Everton goalkeeper was so infuriated with Costa, he risked a red card by grabbing him and getting physical.
Costa had got under Everton's skin. As the season develops, not every player will escape with a yellow card like Howard did.
People Are Talking About Chelsea for All the Right Reasons
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There are very few, if any, football supporters who enjoy reading negative news about the club they follow.
Chelsea have endured their fair share of criticism over the years—some justified, some not—but right now, Diego Costa has changed the agenda.
From talk and criticism of their strikers, suddenly the headlines are positive. There's no more discussion about £50 million flops and weaknesses—these days it's about being title favourites, entertaining football and goals aplenty.
Costa's role in that has been considerable.
From the perspective of Chelsea fans, long may that continue.
Trophies
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What do fans love more than goals? Trophies, of course.
Diego Costa helped deliver one at Atletico Madrid last season, and he'll do the same during his time at Chelsea.
He has been the missing link. From struggling to kill teams off last season, Chelsea are now capable of being out of sight before their opponents know what's hit them.
He is deadly, and when teams have a player like Costa among their ranks, it's not often they come up short when the titles are being handed out at the end of the season.
He Respects Chelsea Fans
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Shortly before the Premier League season got underway, Diego Costa had this message for the Chelsea supporters in Chelsea magazine (via the Evening Standard):
"Now I can say I’m really sorry for the part I played in the [Champions League semi-final Atletico Madrid] won at Stamford Bridge. I remember the atmosphere and the passion of the supporters. They stayed right until the end, getting behind their team, even though it was unlikely they could win after we scored two quick goals. I liked that.
I hope my actions on the pitch and my feet will do the talking and then people can decide if I’m a good player or not, if I’m improving or not. All I can say is I love playing hard and fairly.
"
They were words Costa didn't need to say, but nonetheless, apologising for his role in ending the Blues' Champions League dream was a mark of his character.
He respects Chelsea fans. In return, they will love him for it.
Garry Hayes is Bleacher Report's lead Chelsea correspondent. Follow him on Twitter @garryhayes
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