The yellow card Diego Costa picked up during Chelsea’s 1-0 win a Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon was shrouded by controversy.
It was his fifth booking of the season, which brought about an automatic one-game ban.
That ban will see Costa put his feet up on Boxing Day and miss Chelsea’s very-winnable home game against Bournemouth, while practically guaranteeing his availability for the seemingly harder London Derby vs Tottenham Hotspur in early January.
With Costa now ruled out of Chelsea’s next game, manager Antonio Conte must select a replacement.
And the replacement will likely be Belgian striker Michy Batshuayi, who has been linked with a possible move to West Ham – via The Sun – recently.
Batshuayi has only been a Chelsea player for six months, but he has yet to start a Premier League game.
Costa has been so hot that Batshuayi has not been given a chance, until now.
Bournemouth at home is the perfect platform for the 23-year-old to prove his worth and save himself from the prospect of being sent to Stratford!
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