Ever since his arrival from Liverpool in January 2011, £50M striker Fernando Torres has huffed and puffed, finding himself chasing the shadows of club legend Didier Drogba as he’s since struggled to find his feet at the Bridge. However, in the form of new boy Diego Costa, have Chelsea found the key to finally the key to diminishing the hysteria around the daunting striker position at the west London club as they begin their quest to bring the Barclays Premier League back to London for the first time since 2010.
Costa (25) arrives at the Bridge having put pen to paper on a five-year deal worth £32M, keeping him at the club until the Summer of 2019. The Brazilian’s Chelsea adventure begins on the back of a sensational season with Atletico Madrid, reaching the Champions League final but most importantly snatching the La Liga title from the firm grasps of Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona. Costa wrapped up an impressive tally of 27 league goals last season, 26 of which came from inside the penalty area proving his ability to poach goals as well as his potent, ‘no nonsense’ playing style as he guided the Madrid club to domestic success. The now Spanish international will offer an imposing presence to the Chelsea strike force, similar to that of a Drogba in his prime, a defender’s nightmare who can virtually manhandle a defence, fitting perfectly into Mourinho’s plans and tactical philosophy. Mourinho has since said, “This is the player we bought and we were waiting for since last season. This is why we didn’t buy a striker in the winter market. We were waiting for him, we have him and hopefully everything goes well.”
Based on last season’s disappointing campaign, blue’s boss Jose Mourinho will know that he needs Costa to be on song to help seal the title having fatally slipped up when it mattered most against weaker clubs such as Sunderland, Aston Villa and Crystal Palace when they were crying out for an out-and-out goalscorer to put the likes to bed. Whereas, as opposed to Chelsea, eventual champions Manchester City rarely struggled for goals, having the luxury of switching between top class forwards such as Sergio Agüero, Edin Džeko and Álvaro Negredo.
Costa scored both goals in a 2-0 victory as Chelsea comfortably defeated Spanish outfit Real Sociedad on Tuesday. Wasting no time in endearing himself with the Stamford Bridge faithful, the Brazilian-born forward netted twice in the first seven minutes of the match to top off what has already been a fruitful pre-season for Chelsea’s new man. Costa is in no way a limited striker and has scored many different types of goals already in Chelsea blue; from neat finishes after a mazy dribble to a scrappy strike from a few yards out. Since Drogba’s pomp, The Blues have not possessed such a striker and he could well be the perfect man for a Mourinho team.
Chelsea struggled for goals last season, regularly rotating between Fernando Torres, Samuel Eto’o and Demba Ba, the trio bagging an average 31 goals combined compared to Costa’s 36 on his own. The former Atletico Madrid man will take the pressure off a Chelsea midfield who have been the blue’s main source of goals ever since Drogba left the club in 2012. If the statistics are anything to go by, then they would suggest that Chelsea’s striker crisis is about to come to and end. Have they at last found their man? Only time will tell as Chelsea open their 2014/15 Barclays Premier League campaign away to newcomers Burnley on Sky Sports’ first Monday Night Football of the season.