Wolves manager Bruno Lage explains the one key skill new recruit Diego Costa has which made him a success the first time round in the Premier League.
The 33-year-old moves to the West Midlands with some pedigree, having won titles not only in England with Chelsea but also abroad in Spain, with Atletico Madrid and most recently in Brazil with Atletico Mineiro. No wonder Wolves used their strong Jorge Mendes relationship to manufacture this Premier League return. Costa, who attained 82 goal contributions and three trophies in his 120 appearances made in the colours of Chelsea, was brought in after Deadline Day as a free agent signing to compensate for the loss of big money recruit Sasa Kalajdzic.
The Austrian unfortunately suffered horrible luck on his Wolves debut in the 1-0 victory over Southampton. His ACL was ruptured and since this fatal incident, Kalajdzic has undergone knee surgery and is already on the road to recovery. This, therefore, affords Costa the big opportunity to hit the ground running for his new side with Man City the first opponents lying in wait. It's an opponent whereby he netted twice over his Stamford Bridge stay, so a debut goal against Pep Guardiola's side cannot be ruled in Saturday lunchtimes kick-off.
READ MORE: Diego Costa responds to Eden Hazard's Chelsea remark and makes Wolves Premier League admission
Ahead of the clash, manager Bruno Lage has waxed lyrical on his new recruit and how he has settled in. When asked about what the player in question would bring to his side, the Portuguese boss states what skills Costa had at Chelsea which he hopes will transfer to his West Midlands outfit.
“What I want is to have quality players, but players who go inside the pitch and do everything to help the team win the games,” said Lage via Birmingham Live. “He is that kind of player, that’s why he won what he won at Chelsea, and why he won what he won at Atletico Madrid.
“It’s so hard to be a player here, it’s so hard to be a manager. Sometimes I am here showing a face I am not showing in training. If you call Diego Costa here for five minutes, you will be laughing for four because he has that personality.
“But if you’re going to play one on one against him, he will break your leg if he needs to in order to win the game. This is the kind of profile that he has.
“The Premier League is so hard. Breaking legs is just a joke, but what we can see in the games is competition, duels, physical contact, intensity, the game doesn’t get stopped, it’s emotional - everything. When you go inside (the pitch), you need to go with that emotion and that intensity to win games.”
It will be interesting to see who scores more goals in 2022/23 out of Costa and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Chelsea's Deadline Day recruit has failed to net in his first two outings which have both come in the UEFA Champions League.
Chelsea fans - What was your best memory of Diego Costa in his first spell in England? Leave your memories down below in the comments section!
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