Chelsea took another huge step towards the title with a 3-1 win over Bournemouth on Saturday.
The one concern for Antonio Conte will be that Diego Costa failed to get in on the action again, leaving the goalscoring to Eden Hazard, Marcos Alonso, and an Adam Smith own goal.
Conte gave the striker his public backing after another underwhelming performance. The Spain striker has found the back of the net just three times this calendar year, but his manager is sure he’ll find some consistency again soon.
“I speak with all my players if I’m not happy with someone’s commitment or behaviour, but not if he’s not scoring,” Conte said, quoted by the Independent.
“It can happen. In a lot of circumstances he was unlucky. But a player like Diego Costa can score in every game and I’m sure he can do this.”
Of course, because of what happened in January, speculation surrounding Costa’s future is only going to intensify if his drought continues.
The forward had his head turned by interest from the Chinese Super League and it’s widely expected that Tianjin Quanjian will move for him this summer.
So, what does the player himself have to say about his plans for next season?
The 28-year-old has given a rather cryptic answer, suggesting that while he is happy at the club, he doesn’t actually like living in London.
“I am happy at Chelsea, I am not necessarily saying that I am happy with my life in London,” the Mirror have quoted him.
“But that is something totally different. It has nothing to do with it.”
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