Chelsea Transfer News: Diego Costa Slammed by Atletico Madrid President

Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo believes Diego Costa showed "weakness" when choosing to leave the Spanish champions for Chelsea.

The prolific striker headed to Stamford Bridge during the summer, where he has netted nine times in eight Premier League appearances so far, as reported by WhoScored.com. He scored 27 goals en route to the La Liga title last season, helping Atletico break the domination of Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Cerezo admits that, in hindsight, the decision to sell Costa for £32 million was a poor one, as reported by Radio4G’s show La Jungla 4.0, via Darren Lewis of the Mirror:

"

He’s one of the best strikers in the world. His departure was rushed through because he had a moment of weakness and he couldn’t say no. If the same were to happen now, he wouldn’t leave. The financial side was not so great for us. We received around 50% of what had been discussed.

"

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The Atleti chief also suggested Sergio Aguero left in "a stupid way," per Radio4G and via Jen Evelyn of Inside Spanish Football.

Despite a consistent run of injuries, Costa has linked brilliantly with fellow new signing Cesc Fabregas to form arguably the Blues' most important relationship this season. His power, aggression and expert finishing skills have fired Jose Mourinho's men to an unbeaten run of 10 games at the Premier League summit, four points ahead of nearest challengers Southampton.

The Spaniard worked hard to establish himself in La Liga after initially leaving Atletico in 2009. He wasn't particularly impressive during loan spells with Braga, Celta Vigo and Albacete, prior to being relegated with Valladolid. He returned to the Vicente Calderon after this, where he began to establish the stature we recognise now, as demonstrated below:

Cerezo's comments appear unfair. Costa is someone who has worked doggedly to reach the top since turning professional. He served Atletico brilliantly, progressing from back-up to the likes of Aguero and Radamel Falcao to Ballon d'Or nominee.

The Spanish champions insisted they didn't need to sell key players heading into the summer but decided to anyway. If Cerezo had received double the fee for Costa, it's highly unlikely he would claim the striker gave in to temptation.

Cerezo's mention of Aguero indicates that Costa's supposed "weakness" actually stems from Atletico cashing in on players who could have shaped a successful future, not the individuals giving up on an impressive Rojiblancos project. Frustration appears to be borne out of richer clubs grabbing Cerezo's best talent.

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Considering Real Madrid eked £59.7 million out of Manchester United for Angel Di Maria and Chelsea recently snapped Fabregas up for £27 million—despite him being unwanted at Barcelona—it's clear Cerezo and Atleti sold Costa below his value.

Injury problems may have played a role but additional appearance-based sums should have been put in place if the La Liga side were afraid of losing out. Just a few months down the line, Costa is the second top scorer in the Premier League behind Aguero, both of whom could reach the 30-goal mark this term.

Costa himself offers Chelsea full-blooded, highly-charged performances, as he did with Atletico. The temptation to join the west London club is likely to interest most players but there's no doubt Cerezo made the transfer much easier than it could have been by agreeing the aforementioned sum. Costa looks set to pay his way in goals, even with injuries limiting his playing time right now.