Chelsea striker Diego Costa has found himself starting on the bench in his side’s last two games, and this arguably shows why he deserves to be there.
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The Spaniard came on at half-time for the reigning Premier League champions on Saturday evening, but he was unable to prevent them from falling to a 1-0 defeat to Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge.
While the defeat keeps the Blues in 14th place in the table, with just 15 points from 15 games having already lost eight games this season, it would have done little to ease the pressure on Jose Mourinho.
Despite giving his star striker the opportunity to prove himself, as well as backing him on Friday by dismissing transfer speculation, as reported by The Independent, Costa would have done little to repay that faith with his display this weekend.
Although he appeared to be fired up after initially taking to the pitch, his inability or lack of effort in getting on the end of a superb Willian cross would have left Mourinho scratching his head and possibly worse in terms of being incensed by the Spanish striker’s lack of desire to get on the end of it.
Instead, it was midfielder Nemanja Matic who headed towards goal, and although the Serbian international will be bitterly disappointed with his miss, it doesn’t escape from the fact that many would have expected Costa to be in that position and heading the ball home.
The former Atletico Madrid star was highlighted by Match of the Day pundit Ian Wright in the background, with the replay later showing him walking away from the play as Matic sent his header over.
Costa has scored just four goals in 18 appearances in all competitions so far this season, and it remains to be seen whether or not the 27-year-old continues on the bench or is given a starting role by Mourinho to try and put his struggles behind him.