Diego Costa

[BlueLyon 9,359]

The only down side is that Costa scored 23 goals in 22 games before New Year and only 4 in 15 games after New year. He isnt in best scoring form atm, his overall play is still very good though. It could indicate that he had 'luck' in first half of season, but doesnt mean he is average striker at all. Atletico isnt in their very best for a month or two aswell.

[didierforever 7,349]

mate, Diego Costa is 25 and compared to the 25-year-old Drogba I can say there aren't many differences between the two of them. At that time, Drogba was one of the best strikers in France, but not the best (remember Cisse, Frei, Pauleta, Shabani Nonda). Also he was a late bloomer, his pro career started a bit late and Drogba was Jose's gamble (Roman offered him Ronaldinho, but Jose refused him because he wanted Drogba). If you remember, we has far from impressive in his first two seasons here and he was also diving "like a cunt". People do change, you know and also Jose has the ability to change people so give Diego Costa a break - he is a proven goalscorer and stop comparing a 36-year-old Drogba to the actual Diego Costa. If you really want to compare this two, just wait for Diego Costa to play four of five seasons here and then you can have a go. Add to this the fact that every CF that left Atletico in the last 10-15 years turned into a world-class one and this comparison is useless.

You can write off Rooney, Cavani, Ibrahimovic, Lewandowski, Falcao, Aguero, van Persie. Who else is there for you to sign? Suarez, Benzema, maybe Balotelli and Costa. At this moment, Diego Costa seems to be the right choice as he fits our system as a glove - he is a bull, he is harassing defences week-in, week-out, his work rate is phenomenal, he is quick enough, he's a proven goalscorer and he can also dribble (just like Suarez). Maybe his antics overshadow his potential, but I'm sure Jose will sort this out.

Wait a minute. I dint compare those 2. Others did do that. And then I replied and simply had too. And what is the basis of their comparision, both players dive. Thats it. Like I said, costa is not half the player DD was/is.

As for better options, mandzukic is availabke. With lewandowski goin to bayern and mario anyways not in pep's plan with muller being playef as fakse 9, I expect him to leave. Plus he woukd defo be less than 32mil/40mil if costa signs a renewal. Plus I wouldn't put rvp out of reckonibg already. United need to accomadate rooney, mata, rvp, new players and the likes of januzaj. U simply can't say that it's not possible. I will take these 2 in a heartbeat over costa

[kellzfresh 7,229]

Public opinion about Costa is a bit wrong imo. He is seen as big guy who has good shot, but thats it. He does much more in game. He doesnt do fancy dribbles but his ball control isnt as bad and in the end its all about passing his opponent. He does it with combination of good ball control, speed and strength. His link up play is not as good as Suarez or Aguero, but he is still very good in that area. He has 3 assists so far (Aguero has 5 for example and he has much better finishers around). But statisticaly they produce similar amount of key passes which is important. You can see that Costa is type of player who works for the team. In most cases he will pass if there will be player in better position. I agree with you that he doesnt have powerfull shot on him, he never scores outside pen area (which is quite sad considering he has over 20 goals already). But that might change, I mean he is big strong man and can surely takes powerful shots.

However I disagree on your Benzema/Balo part. As much they have better tehnique, they are amazingly frustrating to watch and Benzema today (as usual) was hot-cold again. He scored simple goal and made few nice runs, but there were several moments where he was making stupid dribbles and lost ball, Modric passed ball to Alonso, but Benzema intercepted it and lost it imediately when he tried to dribble. Should have just left it to Alonso. Also he doesnt have same presence as Costa. Costa is much more determinated to score than Benzema. As goes for Balo, he would be best option, even ahead of Cavani if he could be more consistent and mature. Unfortunely he isnt and makes mistakes because he rushes too much and thinks he can do everything on his own. In certain games he completely dissapears. And I doubt he is mature enough to lead our attack.

EDIT: And maybe I missed one of probably best atrubutes that Costa has: using his speed and strength, he is amazing in making runs and positioning. Same like Schurrle did vs Fulham with those amazing runs; Costa does on regular basis. He has amazing positioning and un-marking ability. Would absolutely work amazing in our counter-attacks. But such thing wont work if we dont have players who can cross or play through balls on regular basis.

Right, he'll absolutely fit our counter attacking like a glove. He is a hard worker and always makes runs to try and get in behind defences. He learned that personally from Falcao. He's not a lazy bum like torres who will disappear in matches and will put 100% effort trying to get on the end of passes, lose balls, crosses.

I'll check his chances created stats to see if he is a good link up player, that is what will sell me on him because hazard also needs that.

Amd if he follows the long line of athletico strikers who became world class after they left, we could be in for a treat.

[yuvala 2,167]

I think we'd all be happy to get him.

But really I'd rather get someone who is really world class, if not then Costa will do.

[The Skipper 20,593]

This is the first time in his career that he's managed to score more than 10 goals in the Spanish League...

This is because he wasn't playing upfront. He used to play out wide when Falcao was there.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

This is because he wasn't playing upfront. He used to play out wide when Falcao was there.

So he's only played one season as a striker? Worse!

Joking aside and his cuntish attitude aside as well, do we really want to splash out the cash for a player who's had one great season at the age of 26?! I mean do we really want to take a 20m+ risk on what could be a one season wonder? How many players have had incredible seasons and got hyped up beyond belief only disappear in the following season?

Plus, the hype around him has reached astronomical levels. I'm not talking about his abilities, but his general reputation for scoring so many goals in a season Athletico are challenging the big boys. His price will be sky-high at the end of this season. I don't think we're that club anymore that pays out of the odds for the highest price during a players career to have him play 2-3 years at his best.

[The only place to be 11,313]

Joking aside and his cuntish attitude aside as well, do we really want to splash out the cash for a player who's had one great season at the age of 26?! I mean do we really want to take a 20m+ risk on what could be a one season wonder? How many players have had incredible seasons and got hyped up beyond belief only disappear in the following season?

Honestly can't tell if this is a Drogba-related joke or not?

Plus, the hype around him has reached astronomical levels. I'm not talking about his abilities, but his general reputation for scoring so many goals in a season Athletico are challenging the big boys. His price will be sky-high at the end of this season. I don't think we're that club anymore that pays out of the odds for the highest price during a players career to have him play 2-3 years at his best.

It all depends on his contract and that release fee. The majority of our buys are value buys but we've still got room in our budget for 'marquee signings' as evidenced by Hazard in 2012 and Willian in 2013. So far we've got in Zouma, Croatian kid and Salah who are those young, FFP-friendly signings but I still think we can go for a Shaw (straddles marquee and value because of his age) and Costa in the summer.

The other options are reportedly Falcao (older, similar price, serious injury and semi-retirement in Monaco) and Cavani (older, much more expensive if available but perhaps better/more established??). Then there's Mandzukic who might be available, isn't much cheaper and has only had one more 'good season'.

It's a tricky one. What we all want is another Didier - a guy who would cost about £30 million, has presence, is still underpriced because he's only really had one good season, works hard and is 25/26 so is approaching his prime but can still be moulded be Jose. If there was a striker available who was like that and Jose wanted him then I'd trust him.

[The Skipper 20,593]

So he's only played one season as a striker? Worse!

Joking aside and his cuntish attitude aside as well, do we really want to splash out the cash for a player who's had one great season at the age of 26?! I mean do we really want to take a 20m+ risk on what could be a one season wonder? How many players have had incredible seasons and got hyped up beyond belief only disappear in the following season?

Plus, the hype around him has reached astronomical levels. I'm not talking about his abilities, but his general reputation for scoring so many goals in a season Athletico are challenging the big boys. His price will be sky-high at the end of this season. I don't think we're that club anymore that pays out of the odds for the highest price during a players career to have him play 2-3 years at his best.

His price is set. It's £32m, his release clause. It's not going to go up or down, and in today's market, for a top class striker, £32m is not a bad price at all.

We will spend £30m on a player if we want to - the Willian signing proves that.

He exhibits the traits that we need in a CF as well. His back to goal and link up play is great, he has great work rate and can easily lead the line on his own. He comes up with big goals as well as he's proven this season.

This isn't his first great season either. Last year, he still grabbed 20 goals even though he wasn't playing as the main forward as Falcao was there - so he isn't a one season wonder.

He's not 26 either, he's 25. That means if we did sign him we'd get him with his prime years ahead of him.

I would not be disappointed with this signing at all.

[yuvala 2,167]

His price is set. It's £32m, his release clause. It's not going to go up or down, and in today's market, for a top class striker, £32m is not a bad price at all.

We will spend £30m on a player if we want to - the Willian signing proves that.

He exhibits the traits that we need in a CF as well. His back to goal and link up play is great, he has great work rate and can easily lead the line on his own. He comes up with big goals as well as he's proven this season.

This isn't his first great season either. Last year, he still grabbed 20 goals even though he wasn't playing as the main forward as Falcao was there - so he isn't a one season wonder.

He's not 26 either, he's 25. That means if we did sign him we'd get him with his prime years ahead of him.

I would not be disappointed with this signing at all.

Spot on.

I'd rather get someone like Cavani, obviously.. but I certainly wont be unhappy about signing Costa.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

Honestly can't tell if this is a Drogba-related joke or not?

It all depends on his contract and that release fee. The majority of our buys are value buys but we've still got room in our budget for 'marquee signings' as evidenced by Hazard in 2012 and Willian in 2013. So far we've got in Zouma, Croatian kid and Salah who are those young, FFP-friendly signings but I still think we can go for a Shaw (straddles marquee and value because of his age) and Costa in the summer.

The other options are reportedly Falcao (older, similar price, serious injury and semi-retirement in Monaco) and Cavani (older, much more expensive if available but perhaps better/more established??). Then there's Mandzukic who might be available, isn't much cheaper and has only had one more 'good season'.

It's a tricky one. What we all want is another Didier - a guy who would cost about £30 million, has presence, is still underpriced because he's only really had one good season, works hard and is 25/26 so is approaching his prime but can still be moulded be Jose. If there was a striker available who was like that and Jose wanted him then I'd trust him.

The fact that Drogba turned out to be so good, does imply that Costa will too. You have to see the risk in it. My point is that the gain to risk ratio of signing him seems low to me. I'm pretty sure that we can afford to sign him after the business we did in Jan, but I'm talking about the club's transfer policy, not our financial ability. Fair point about the lack of alternatives. I think that is the biggest argument for the signing of Costa.

His price is set. It's £32m, his release clause. It's not going to go up or down, and in today's market, for a top class striker, £32m is not a bad price at all.

We will spend £30m on a player if we want to - the Willian signing proves that.

He exhibits the traits that we need in a CF as well. His back to goal and link up play is great, he has great work rate and can easily lead the line on his own. He comes up with big goals as well as he's proven this season.

This isn't his first great season either. Last year, he still grabbed 20 goals even though he wasn't playing as the main forward as Falcao was there - so he isn't a one season wonder.

He's not 26 either, he's 25. That means if we did sign him we'd get him with his prime years ahead of him.

I would not be disappointed with this signing at all.

Will his price still be 32m when there are a bunch of clubs fighting for him in the summer? On any account, 32m is not a bargain by any stretch of the imagination. Again, I know that we can pay that if we want to, but I'm asking, do we want to? I know that his style fits and I'm not against signing him, but I have two concerns: He's in incredible form this season, will that continue next season? Can he continue scoring with almost every chance he gets, especially after moving to different league and probably needing some time to adjust? My second concern is his attitude. Even if you disregard his diving, he's a player that kick players, elbows them, steps on their heels..etc Something that really isn't welcome in English football and his personality to me is not one that we should have in team.

I wouldn't be overly disappointed by his signing either, but that's mainly due to the lack of other options. Obviously, I'd much prefer we go for Cavani if available.

[The only place to be 11,313]

The fact that Drogba turned out to be so good, does imply that Costa will too. You have to see the risk in it. My point is that the gain to risk ratio of signing him seems low to me. I'm pretty sure that we can afford to sign him after the business we did in Jan, but I'm talking about the club's transfer policy, not our financial ability. Fair point about the lack of alternatives. I think that is the biggest argument for the signing of Costa.

Our transfer policy allows for this type of signing, Last year it would've been Rooney if United had played ball. To me, Costa looks like he's in exactly the same position as Drogba was which is where you want to be signing strikers - approaching their peak, coming off of a good season and looking for a new challenge. Of course there are risks associated with any transfer but he seems to be the best choice at the moment.

Will his price still be 32m when there are a bunch of clubs fighting for him in the summer? On any account, 32m is not a bargain by any stretch of the imagination. Again, I know that we can pay that if we want to, but I'm asking, do we want to? I know that his style fits and I'm not against signing him, but I have two concerns: He's in incredible form this season, will that continue next season? Can he continue scoring with almost every chance he gets, especially after moving to different league and probably needing some time to adjust? My second concern is his attitude. Even if you disregard his diving, he's a player that kick players, elbows them, steps on their heels..etc Something that really isn't welcome in English football and his personality to me is not one that we should have in team.

I wouldn't be overly disappointed by his signing either, but that's mainly due to the lack of other options. Obviously, I'd much prefer we go for Cavani if available.

Firstly, his price is the price. That's the price at which the club have to sell so it doesn't matter how many clubs are involved because if the activate that clause (if it remains in place) then there's no reason to pay anymore. Of course there will be concerns over whether he can perform but he has that physical side to him that you need in this league.

As regards his attitude, I think a lot of that might be down to playing in Spain. Let's be honest, our players aren't exactly saints are they. JT was sent off in a CL semi for kicking and Drogba was sent off in a final for slapping so there's room for a little bit of cuntishness so long as it doesn't escalate.

[BleedsBlue 1,549]

Schurles hat trick showed us exactly what we are missing out in the strikers department. Frankly we don't need to build a team around for our striker,all we need is someone who links up well with our attacking midfielders and is strong.

Costa fits the bill perfectly and would be a great buy for 32m. Cavani is the better striker but he's way too expensive for us so the next best option is Diego Costa.

Our strikers for next season should be-

Costa

Lukaku

Schurle

[BloodIsBlue 291]

Diego Costa doesn't put his power behind his shots because they'll leave the stadium and never go on target. Costa does not bother scoring any corkers the ball just never moves how he wants it to when he smashed it. That striker we need needs dribbling and the ability to shoot some curvy balls at goal. Costa can play with his back to the net and that might be the most important thing but his dribbling very basic, I don't think his strength will get him out of sticky situations as easily in the EPL. I also see no point of having Costa and Lukaku, if Lukaku if going to play second-fiddle behind a world class striker he needs be able to give some different attributes. If the players are too similar Lukaku will only play when the first striker needs a rest and not as a tactical move.

[didierforever 7,349]

Lets buy every striker who is 25years old and has had one good season cos that is what happened with DD and that's what will surely happen with everyone else.

[The Skipper 20,593]

Lets buy every striker who is 25years old and has had one good season cos that is what happened with DD and that's what will surely happen with everyone else.

No one is saying that lol, people are just bringing up DD because he was similarly doubted at the start of his Chelsea career for the same reason.

[didierforever 7,349]

No one is saying that lol, people are just bringing up DD because he was similarly doubted at the start of his Chelsea career for the same reason.

When people say "I doubt costa. He dives around. Morwover he has had only one good season as a striker that too in a league where even SOLDADO (of all people) scored 30 goals last season. So I don't think he is worth 32mil".

And to that all people say is "were u talking about Dd". Then what are u supposed to say to that?

What people don't understand that it was not just the football that DD was good at. He had character. He had the mettle and the balls to stand up and take responsibility when required. He was a leader on and off the pitch. He was a SHOW-MAN. A once in a life-time player like Jt and lamps. U simply can't expect someone to be him just cos their situation is similar. To expect the same is unfair to costa.

Moreover I think people are more inclined towards buying costa than mandzukic is cos they expect him to do an encore. For me, that is never goin to happen

[YouNameIt 1,511]

Please dont mention Didier in this thread. He deserves better.

[The only place to be 11,313]

What people don't understand that it was not just the football that DD was good at. He had character. He had the mettle and the balls to stand up and take responsibility when required. He was a leader on and off the pitch. He was a SHOW-MAN. A once in a life-time player like Jt and lamps. U simply can't expect someone to be him just cos their situation is similar. To expect the same is unfair to costa.

True. He was also a diver and he lost his nerve in the final in Moscow and may actually have cost us the cup because it meant he couldn't take a penalty in the shootout.

But that's what humans are - complex.

Costa is only 25 (like Didier was) yet he's had a fantastic season. Given his price and the lack of other options, he's probably the best option out there this summer and the point Skipper is making (I think) is that the reasons being given to discount him could equally be applied to Drogba before we signed him.