Diego Costa's Chelsea career is as good as over.
He remains contracted to the Stamford Bridge club, but chances of him pulling on one of their shirts again appear slim - especially while Antonio Conte remains as manager.
At the start of the summer, he received a text from Conte which informed him that he was no longer needed. Since then, the Spanish international has remained in Brazil - the country of his birth.
In an interview given to
Sportsmail from his childhood home in Lagarto, Costa has accused Chelsea of treating him 'like a criminal'. He also refuses to rule out the possibility of legal action against them.
While Costa's relationship with Conte appears irreparable, the former Atletico Madrid striker also revealed that he remains close to former manager, Jose Mourinho, who brought him to Stamford Bridge in 2014. In fact, he explains that the Manchester United boss has been in touch with him over the summer.
"Jose has called me, direct to my phone, just to check I am okay and to see how I am," Costa says.
"He wished me good luck. I never had any problems with Jose and we have a strong relationship. Everyone was very sad when things didn't work out in the end for him at Chelsea."
Costa also used the interview to reaffirm his desire to return to Atleti, the club at which he played between 2010 and 2014.
"My desire is to go to Atletico. I've spoken to Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia. I said, "If the manager doesn't want me, I want to go to Atletico Madrid"."
