According to the Daily Mail, former Chelsea striker Diego Costa is open to a return to the Premier League, with ambitious Everton and Wolves both reportedly chasing the Spanish international. The 30-year-old is currently out of favour at Atletico Madrid. Los Rojiblancos have brought in Alvaro Morata from Chelsea on a permanent deal and splashed out big money on Portuguese youngster Joao Felix, as Diego Simeone’s side eye another tilt at the Spanish top-flight title.

On the wane

In truth, Diego Costa is no longer the snarling, brilliant brute of a centre-forward who gave Premier League defenders nightmares during his time at Chelsea. His antics and temperament were always in question during his time in England. However, his talent for finding the back of the net was not, as his goals helped the Blues to the top-flight title in two of his three seasons in the Premier League.

Last season he struggled to find his best form, making just 16 La Liga appearances and scoring twice. He looked like striker who definitely on the wane and not at the top of his game that is for sure. The fact that he picked-up a red card for an unsavoury comment to a referee did not help his cause of game time. The incident illustrated the dark side of Costa that is often bumbling below the surface.

A statement signing

Despite his struggle last season, Diego Costa is still a big-name player. Reports suggest that Everton majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri wants to make Costa a statement signing. The Toffees are searching for a striker and have been since the departure of Romelu Lukaku to Manchester United in 2017. Youngster Dominic Calvert-Lewin has promise but does not currently score enough goals to be the first choice striker.

The other striking options are Turkish international Cenk Tosun and Senegalese forward Oumar Niasse. According to various media reports, the Merseysider’s are prepared to listen to offers for the misfiring pair this summer. Costa would certainly add something to Marco Silva’s attacking options. However, his signing does not fit into Everton’s recruitment policy under director of football Marcel Brands.

The Toffees are buying younger players, who they can develop and who also have a good sell-on value if they are sold in the future. Costa will be 31 in October, so certainly does not fit that particular description.

Wolves the favourites to sign Costa

Despite the reported interest from Everton, Midlands outfit Wolves are current favourites to sign the Spaniard. The reason that Wolves are the favourites to sign the experienced forward is that his agent Jorge Mendes has close ties with the Midlands club. Some media reports earlier this week even claim that Diego Costa had agreed terms with the Midlands outfit, which was obviously premature.

Whether we will see Costa plying his trade in the Premier League again is unknown. At the moment his future seems most likely to lie in the Midlands. However, as we know in football anything can happen. If Costa does return to the English top-flight, one thing is for sure, it will be a far more interesting league for the Brazilian-born strikers’ presence.

Will Diego Costa be returning to the Premier League this summer?