Chelsea Transfer News: Diego Costa Considers China Amid Atletico Madrid Rumours

Chelsea striker Diego Costa is reportedly considering a move to the Chinese Super League that could be worth up to £70 million if former club and first-choice destination Atletico Madrid are unable to come up with the funds to secure a transfer. 

That's according to Matt Law of the Daily Telegraph, who claimed China's top clubs have emerged as Costa's most powerful suitors and are willing to more than double his current wages.

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

Atletico have already confirmed they want to bring Costa back to the Estadio Vicente Calderon, but club president Enrique Cerezo told Onda Cero (h/t Daily Mirror's John Cross) negotiations with Chelsea would be tricky: “It is totally logical that Atletico is interested in the return of the striker but to negotiate with Chelsea is very hard, nearly impossible.”

According to Law, Costa has grown tired of life in England and the constant scrutiny he faces in the press. A handful of incidents have given him a bad reputation and have led to multiple bans, per Dominic Fifield of the Guardian.

His latest ban came after an incident during the 2-0 FA Cup loss against Everton, the highlights of which you can see below, per FATV:

Chelsea have announced Antonio Conte as their next manager, and the Italian will sit down with Costa to hash out his future, per Law. But the Spain international is said to have made up his mind, and a summer exit seems likely.

The Telegraph (h/t BBC's Neil Henderson) has been pushing the rumour since Conte's appointment became official:

Costa was a smash hit during his first season in the Premier League, leading the Chelsea attack on its way to the title. His physical brand of football proved perfect for the English game, and while he was involved in plenty of shoving matches with defenders, it didn't impact his ability to put the ball in the net.

The first half of the 2015-16 campaign proved different. The 27-year-old lost his shooting touch, and with little cover available on the bench, the Blues went into every match without a strong attacking focal point.

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

Per WhoScored.com, he has bounced back since interim manager Guus Hiddink was appointed and has bagged 11 Premier League goals during the ongoing campaign, but plenty of pundits maintain he's not worth the trouble, even if he continues to score.

ESPN FC's Mark Worrall is among them:

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Come kick-off in August, Conte needs to have a fully committed dressing room packed with players who can keep a cool head and won't shirk responsibilities in the face of adversity. In this respect, Costa is a liability the Italian simply can't afford with which to take a risk. Another mid-season battle of wills between two headstrong men could spell disaster.

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Costa had the best spell of his career with Atletico, where he replaced Radamel Falcao after the Colombian left for AS Monaco. His high work rate and physical style proved a perfect fit for manager Diego Simeone's philosophy, and the Argentinian coach has been unable to replace Costa since he left for London.

Antoine Griezmann has enjoyed a fine season for the Rojiblancos, but, so far, Simeone has failed to find him a proper partner up front. Luciano Vietto and Angel Correa have potential, but Simeone needs an impact player.

Costa knows the city, the club and Simeone's system, so in many ways, he would make a perfect target. But the transfer fee could prove a huge issue, particularly if Chinese clubs get involved.

Per Law, Everton's Romelu Lukaku, Paris Saint-Germain's Edinson Cavani and Napoli's Gonzalo Higuain are all seen as possible replacements, and the £70 million Chinese clubs are reportedly willing to pay would go a long way toward securing one of those players.

Striking a balance between the player's wishes and a major transfer fee will prove critical, and if Atletico can't provide the latter, Costa's only way out of Chelsea may be a move to China.

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