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Diego Costa: Chelsea leave striker out of Champions League squad

Last updated on .From the section Footballcomments218

Diego Costa
Costa scored 20 goals in 35 Premier League games to help Chelsea win the title last season

Diego Costa has not been included in Chelsea's Champions League squad.

The 28-year-old striker has not played for the Blues this season, and spent much of August in his native Brazil.

Costa said he wanted to rejoin Atletico Madrid, and that Chelsea were treating him like "a criminal" by demanding an "impossible fee".

The Spain international was named in Chelsea's Premier League squadexternal-link after the transfer window closed, but his future at the club remains uncertain.

Meanwhile, Manchester United named Zlatan Ibrahimovic in their Champions League squad, though he is not expected to return from injury before December.

The 35-year-old former Sweden striker made 46 appearances and scored 28 goals for United last season, and re-signed on a one-year contract in August.

Also included is striker James Wilson, 21, who has not played a first-team game since October 2016 when he was on loan at Derby and was not allocated a squad number at the start of the Premier League season, but has now been given number 29.

Liverpool have not included right-back Nathaniel Clyne in their squad. The England international, 26, has been out with a back problem since the start of the season.

And Tottenham have not registered forward Vincent Janssen.

The 23-year-old Dutchman signed for the club last summer and had a disappointing debut season. He has made only one appearance for Spurs this campaign.

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218 comments

  • Comment posted by genuinetekkers, at 15:53 4 Sep 2017

    Infuriates me that players like Costa can sign deals and then claim to be held as 'criminals' to them. The whole point of a contract is agreed terms of employment - don't sign something you don't intend to stick to in the hope you'll get a high but not prohibitive transfer fee elsewhere exactly when you want it

  • Comment posted by Razor Sharpster, at 15:51 4 Sep 2017

    I'm going to miss Costa when he goes. As close to the likes of Mark Hughes or Duncan Ferguson as the modern game can get. A right pain, in more ways than one!

    As much as I admire the aggressiveness of the player, the infantile mind of the man has tarnished him badly.

    A multi-millionaire footballer sulking about his club treating him as a criminal? My heart bleeds for him as he sits at home!

  • Comment posted by User0250341346, at 15:52 4 Sep 2017

    Horrible man. Horrible player. Horrible club and even worse fans.

  • Comment posted by D1679316829339, at 16:03 4 Sep 2017

    Hope Chelsea sue him for £50m someone has to make a stand against footballers who sign a contract for 5 years and then decide because a so called big club want to sign them have a sulk and hissy fit and sit on a beach and refuse to play. It is up to the club what fee they put on a player not the player.

  • Comment posted by D1679291009231, at 16:25 4 Sep 2017

    BREAKING NEWS...

    A player who has been told by his manager he has no future with the team has not been named in the CL squad.

    In other news a leaf has fallen near a tree and bell has been heard near a church

  • Comment posted by Jaffabhoy , at 15:56 4 Sep 2017

    Costa...i can only deduce you don't care, however, stay away from Chelsea. You're a rat & a traitor. Fans from all clubs dig deep to keep people like you in wealth. Your kind seem to be polluting the game. It's time users like you were hounded out. Enjoy the rest of your football career, because any right-minded fan should hope that its a disaster. The honest fan deserves better.

  • Comment posted by User0192983237, at 16:26 4 Sep 2017

    @ 28 insert name here

    FAKE NEWS!!!! Costa had been angling for a move for the last 2 seasons, why cant people like you and the press comprehend that? Why should Conte put up with a disruptive player, people seem to forget he was up to his eyeballs the previous season in the Mourinho fiasco. Last season he wanted to leave in January, he's a liability no matter how many goals he scores.

  • Comment posted by Barndoor, at 16:45 4 Sep 2017

    53. Posted by Aminur

    Rashford is under 21 so does not need to be included in the 25....

  • Comment posted by reddwarf2708, at 16:48 4 Sep 2017

    @53 Marcus Rashford has not been named in the Champions League Squad List A because he qualifies for List B...

    List B is for players born after January 1 1996, which must be submitted no later than 24 hours before a match.

    Rashford was born in 1997.

  • Comment posted by cfcspud, at 16:41 4 Sep 2017

    Why is this a story? Why would Chelsea name Costa in their CL squad if he's in dispute with them and wants to leave? BBC Salford journalism at it's best....laughable garbage...

  • Comment posted by User0126244157, at 16:46 4 Sep 2017

    Dear Chelsea, Costa thinks you are treating him like a criminal.

    Please treat me the same way for half of his salary!

  • Comment posted by chas, at 15:52 4 Sep 2017

    A bit difficult for Costa to play in Europe when he's in South America. My guess is he's trying to avoid the probable legal action for breach of contract when he returns to Europe. He's reportedly had the removal men clear out his UK home already.

  • Comment posted by BBCUSER, at 16:06 4 Sep 2017

    If a farmer owned an animal with the attitude of Costa, it wouldn't be around long.

  • Comment posted by disgustedofwells, at 16:41 4 Sep 2017

    Costa isn't very bright. He'll lose a fortune, but has already got more money than most of us will see in a lifetime. Only Atletico will bid for him anyway, he's a laughing stock. His value as CL eligible in Jan will be increased by his absence, but why would CFC have named the "criminal" in a CL Squad anyway? He's only named in PL Squad so they can sue the fool for not fulfilling his contract.

  • Comment posted by Si Bradley, at 16:56 4 Sep 2017

    2 vastly different examples of a footballer, one angry man who has channelled his focus to looking after himself physically and adding to the team, the other is an angry man who has let his petulance ruin his ability and disrupts his teammates. Fast forward 20 years and who is the real loser Mr Costa... what a waste of talent. He'll come back fat and slow, Zlatan will score goals and help his team

  • Comment posted by The Chelsea Fan, at 16:16 4 Sep 2017

    Absolutely no more time for Costa at Chelsea - he forgot the golden rule, no-one is bigger than the club. Leaving him out of the European team increases his value, since he can play for someone else. In the mean time, let him stay in Brazil, as long as he does, we don't have to pay him.

  • Comment posted by We all laugh at the London stadium, at 19:28 4 Sep 2017

    @131 - as a United fan I tip the hat to Conte. He dealt with Costa brilliantly. He saw him and Ivanovic down tools on Mourinho's watch to get rid of Jose who rightly lobbed Eva out for getting involved with Ivanovic.
    So he binned Ivanovic and got a tune out of Costa. When Costa stropped because he wanted the China money, Conte put the arm round him. Played him. Then binned him by text. Perfect.

  • Comment posted by Tim, at 15:55 4 Sep 2017

    At last some premiership clubs are taking some of these prima Donna players to task. Maybe they will act like real men and stop throwing the toys out their prams. Try being professional although I am sure it is the agents who stir it up. Costa is good but by keeping in with the rules he could we'll have been transferred by now especially with the world cup soon. Grow up.

  • Comment posted by We all laugh at the London stadium, at 17:02 4 Sep 2017

    @72 Nib.

    Listen, if Joe Public can be told when to work/not to come in by text when on zero hour contracts I wouldn't lose sleep over Costa being told when season ended that he will no longer be required but will be paid to train until another team buys him..
    Mindful of Roman clawing his money back from Adrian Mutu over breach of contract, you might want to text Diego to go back to training...

  • Comment posted by King Pug, at 16:53 4 Sep 2017

    Presumably Chelsea are refusing to pay Costa for refusing to work? Surely that would happen in any other walk of life.

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