When going gets tough, the tough get going. Diego Costa has remained a living testament of this statement to the footballing folklore time and again. Yet, seldom has he received the appreciation he deserves. He is a striker who dominates defenses at will with his muscular power and has always come good in crunch situations.
Diego Costa has the ability to keep possession of the ball for a longer spell. The physical authority along with the possession play grants him time and space to score at will. However, he has failed to justify his talent until now.
The momentum that he has started to gain since the World Cup in Russia might bring him the glory he deserves. Let us have a quick look at his career so far.
Diego Costa was born in Brazil. He attracted the attention of Portuguese agent Jorge Mendes in the under-18 Taça de São Paulo tournament. Mendes offered him a contract with the Portuguese club, Braga.
Mendes is a super agent representing some of the great football players like Cristiano Ronaldo, David de Gea and James Rodriguez. This man has a visionary knack for identifying budding talents. He has been named Best Agent of the Year at the Global Soccer awards for a record six consecutive years from 2010 to 2015.
Costa was keen to grab the opportunity and after an initial hesitation from his father, he moved to Portugal. He joined Braga in 2006 but didn’t get playing time due to lack of youth team at the club. In 2007, Mendes managed a transfer for Diego to Atletico Madrid.
Then Atletico Madrid President, Enrique Cerezo, presented him as “the new Kaka”. However, Costa failed to leave a mark and was loaned to Celta Vigo and other clubs for successive years till 2010.
When Spain became World Champions in 2010, Costa was still trying to find his feet on the football field. His injury-prone body and confrontational behaviour were continuously pushing him back whenever he tried to gain momentum.
Finally, he found his spark in the Copa del Rey in the 2012-13 season. He edged past Cristiano Ronaldo to become the top scorer in the tournament. He then started the next season on a positive note with a brace against Sevilla in their 3-1 win in the first match of the league.
He also appeared for his home country in 2 friendly matches in the year 2013. However, after looking into his sensational performances with the Spanish club Atletico Madrid in the early season of 2013-14, Royal Spanish Football Federation had officially requested FIFA to allow Costa to play for Spain. Diego Costa responded with a letter to Brazilian Football Confederation requesting a permission to join the Spanish National Team.
The controversy surrounding Costa’s decision to play for Spain didn’t go well, both for Costa and Spain. Spain was below par in the 2014 World Cup and so was Costa. He was even booed by Brazilian fans.
After the World Cup in 2014, he switched leagues and joined Chelsea in the Premier League.