Costa claims Conte no longer wants him at Chelsea

Chelsea striker Diego Costa says he has been told
by manager Antonio Conte that he does not have a
future at Stamford Bridge.
The striker has been linked with a move away from
the Premier League champions for much of the
past season, despite having scored 22 goals in all
competitions.
Costa was tipped for a move to the lucrative
Chinese Super League in January only to commit to
Chelsea for the remainder of the campaign, but his
future has been cast into fresh doubt since reports
emerged linking the Blues with a bid for Everton
striker Romelu Lukaku.
The 28-year-old Costa has now stated that Conte
has informed him he is free to look for another club
and believes his dip in form in the second half of
the season is behind the decision.
"I had a simple little message on my mobile from
Conte in which he said that he isn't counting on
me for next season," Costa told the media
following Spain's 2-2 friendly draw with Colombia
on Wednesday.
"It will be because I've done badly this year. It's a
shame. I've forwarded the message on to the
people at the club for them to decide but it's clear
that the coach isn't counting on me and he doesn't
want me there.
"I'm on the market and so I'm looking for a team. If
the coach doesn't want you, you have to leave."
Costa has been linked with a potential move back
to Atletico Madrid but he says a return is
complicated by the LaLiga club's transfer ban.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) refused to
uphold Atletico's appeal against a ban on
registering new players handed down by FIFA,
which means they will be unable to field any new
signings until January next year.
"It would be nice to go back to Atletico but I have
to think everything over," he said. "There's a World
Cup [in 2018] and I need to play. Being four or five
months without playing is tough, but people know
that I love my Atletico team-mates a lot, I love
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