The upcoming round of international fixtures give Chelsea striker Diego Costa the opportunity to turn his Premier League form into goals for Spain, with England’s leading scorer yet to break his duck for the 2012 European Championship winners.
Costa has made a barnstorming start to life at Stamford Bridge – his nine goals in seven games make him the Premier League’s top scorer and come on the back of a prolific few years at Atletico Madrid. After 64 goals in 135 games for the Spanish champions, Costa is on the road to replicating the same for the Blues and it could end in consecutive league winners’ medals.
But Costa’s goals haven’t carried over to the international arena. His four caps for Spain have seen the 26-year-old fail to net during what’s been a difficult time for La Roja. Costa debuted under Vicente Del Bosque shortly before the World Cup following his controversial decision to switch allegiance from his homeland, Brazil, to his adopted country and was booed upon returning to Brazil over the summer.
By the end of Spain’s involvement in the tournament it was the holders’ implosion – not Costa’s nationality or lack of goals – that was under focus. It was clear to see in his two World Cup appearances that Spain hadn’t worked out how best to play to his strengths – perhaps because a pre-tournament injury limited his involvement in training – but Chelsea have shown the benefit of building the team around Costa.
As Del Bosque oversees a new generation the chance to make Costa the spearhead is there. Spain have the luxury of mirroring his blossoming relationship with Cesc Fabregas, the Premier League’s leading creator, and supplementing that with contributions from David Silva, Pedro Rodriguez and Andres Iniesta, all in the Spain squad for qualification games against Slovakia and Luxembourg. If it clicks for Costa and co, we could be looking at the Euro 2016 winners in waiting.
