Chelsea outcast, Diego Costa refused to jet back to London on Tuesday from Brazil even though a reservation was made in his name for the JJ8084 flight which left Sao Paulo Guarulhos airport on Monday and arrived London Heathrow the next day.
According to Marca, "Chelsea were expecting Costa to return to London and to train with the club's reserves, but his agent Jorge Mendes has been working in recent days to force through a transfer to Atletico Madrid in January - when Los Rojiblancos can once again register players, following their transfer ban - and the hope is that when Costa does return to Europe that he will fly directly to the Spanish capital."
Chelsea Manager, Antonio Conte had told the player at the end of last season that he was surplus to requirement at the club and that his services were no longer required. Following the text message, Costa has refused to return to Stanford Bridge, preferring to remain in Brazil where he spent his holiday. He accused the Club of treating him like a criminal and attempting to send him to China against his wish.
The striker is keen on forcing a move back to Atletico Madrid. However, such deal can only be possible in January since the club is still serving a transfer ban. Meanwhile, clubs that had attempted to temporary sign the player on loan withdrew their bids due to wage-related issues.
Meanwhile, Chelsea are insisting that the player must return to training, even though his locker had been reportedly cleared and his car removed from parking lot reserved for first team players. The move adds credence to the player's claim that Chelsea have concluded plans to banish him to the reserve team with no contact with the first team, a move he explained was aimed at humiliating him.
Costa was fined by Chelsea few weeks ago. It is yet to be seen if the Club would impose further sanction or sue him for breach of contract, especially now that his name has been included in the team list of players billed to prosecute the EPL this season.
