The combative Spain striker also created the opener when he cleverly dragged a pass back into the path of Eden Hazard to put Chelsea 1-0 up in the fifth minute. Chelsea coach Antonio Conte told reporters on Tuesday he had always been sure that Costa would find the net again after a run of bad luck in recent games. It is very important for his confidence, for us, also because he scored two really important goals but also two beautiful goals after combinations which showed good ... coordination between him and his team mates," he said. Asked about the persistent speculation that Costa might leave Chelsea after the current season, Conte said such talk seemed to be an attempt to distract his players from their target of winning the title. "We must be stronger than this speculation because we must be compact and think that our target is really important," the Italian said.

Source: The Star April 25, 2017 22:18 UTC