Ex-Chelsea striker misses Atletico training, considering future

Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa missed training on Monday because he is considering his future with the LaLiga leaders, a club source said.

Costa, who helped Atletico win their last LaLiga title in 2014, has struggled to make an impact since returning to the club from Chelsea in 2018. The 32-year-old has six months left on his contract.

The Spain international’s second spell with Atletico has been repeatedly disrupted by injuries and he has recently returned from a spell out due to deep-vein thrombosis.

Costa converted a penalty in a 3-1 win over Elche on 19 December and he came off the bench late in the 2-0 victory over Real Sociedad three days later.

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But he was absent on Monday from Atletico’s first training session after the Christmas break, ahead of Wednesday’s game at home to Getafe. Spanish newspaper AS reported that Costa had asked to rescind his contract immediately for family reasons.

Costa has started 43 LaLiga matches since returning to Atletico for a reported €60 million from Chelsea, scoring 12 goals.