It is not a secret that almost all powerful European clubs long to avail themselves of the services of Diego Costa, including Chelsea. But his verbal agreement with Mourinho was a secret, until now.
According to Spanish “La Sexta”, Mourinho and the striker sensation have reached a ‘verbal agreement’ about his transfer to Chelsea at the end of the season.
The Spanish media presented this as exclusive information from a “well informed source”.
Reportedly, Atletico know that they can’t hold onto Costa, since he has a minimum buyout clause installed to his contract. The fee is 32 million pounds, a hefty price, but considering Costa’s form and abilities, it won’t be surprising if multiple clubs offer that money to Atletico by the end of the season.
Mourinho didn’t want to gamble, so he moved to the offensive, and came close to securing the signature of Brazilian born striker, who declared that he will be playing for Spain from now on.
Of course, this verbal agreement is only a promise, it is not in any way a legal obligation, but it is expected that a man of honor should keep his word.
If that will be the case, Mourinho will, once again, be victorious in the transfer battles over his Premier League rivals. Costa was Arsenal’s target for a long time, so if this transfer takes place, Mourinho will “steal” him right in front of Wenger’s nose. Earlier this season, he had done that with Willian, he was heading to Tottenham, but in the last second he opted for Chelsea and the ex-Spurs manager Villas-Boas left empty handed.
Diego Costa scored 19 goals in La Liga this season, only 3 goals less than Cristiano Ronaldo, the winner of the Golden ball award, and acquiring such a striker would be a huge boost for any club that buys him.
It will be interesting if Atletico could use this expected transfer to buy out Thibaut Courtois’ contract from Chelsea. The young Belgian goalkeeper is playing his third season with the Spanish side, as a loaned Chelsea player. He demanded from Mourinho to say if he will be the coach’s first choice of goalkeeper for the next season if he comes back to Chelsea, but Portuguese manager remained silent. It is expected that Courtois will request to be transferred if Mourinho doesn’t make up his mind, and the continuation of his spell with Atletico Madrid is the logical choice.
