Diego Costa got himself into hot water again after drawing a yellow card in a 2-2 draw against Watford – his fifth of the season – to earn a match ban against Manchester United next week. With yet another weekend of controversy for the hot-blooded scoring machine, Chelsea interim manager Guus Hiddink seemed to have no answers as to how the team will handle him moving forward.
Per the Telegraph, Hiddink confirmed that Costa will indeed miss the match against Man United but praised his efforts during the match against Watford, in which Costa scored both of Chelsea’s goal in the effort. Hiddink conceded that he was unsure how the club intends to handle Costa in the future, suggesting that the Spanish striker’s attitude often gets the better of him.
“He (Costa) focused himself where he’s good, and there he’s very dangerous. That’s important. He’s not wasting extra energy where he shouldn’t, and he did that.
“He is out for United, with a fifth (booking). Which means we have to think how to solve that problem. It’s a pity because he’d put in a good performance. So we need to solve that problem in the next 48 hours.
“When Diego was booed – whether it was right or wrong – he had a very good reaction as a professional when he was substituted by Steve (Holland). I think that made him think: ‘How should I go on?’ He showed that (against Watford). I give you no guarantee on the future because, when people are emotional with their temperament, anything can happen in the game. That must show in attitude.”
Costa recorded his first brace of the season during the draw, but the team ultimately failed to win the match due in large part to a missed penalty kick from Oscar.
To date, the Blues have not won back-to-back Premier League matches all season.