Chelsea Star Confirms He Almost Made €29m Move To Liverpool

The January transfer window is now closed but that won’t stop the newspapers from speculating ahead of the summer so we’ll bring you all the news and gossip. Today, Diego Costa admits he almost joined Liverpool in 2013…

Spanish striker Diego Costa has confirmed he almost joined Liverpool in 2013 before eventually leaving Atletico Madrid for Chelsea last summer, according to reports.

Costa was strongly linked with a switch to Anfield 18 months ago after enjoying his breakthrough season with Atletico where he scored 20 goals in 40 games in all competitions.

Reports claimed that the Reds had triggered the 26-year-old’s €29m (£21m) release clause with Brendan Rodgers identifying him as a potential replacement for Luis Suarez – who was being linked with a move away from the club at that time.

However, Costa ended up pulling the plug on the move and he’s now revealed that the reason he opted to stay at the Vicente Calderon was because as he felt it was important to keep growing with Madrid after fighting so hard to make his name at the club.

When quizzed about how close he came to joining Liverpool, Costa told reporters:

“I was close to leaving Atletico,”

“Liverpool are a great team, but after fighting so hard and overcoming difficulties to get my place at Atletico, how could I leave?

“I thought it was very important to keep growing with Atletico and to play there for many years.”

It worked out well for the Brazilian-born hitman as he stayed at Atletico and scored 36 goals in 52 games during the 2013/14 season to fire Diego Simeone’s side to the La Liga title and the final of the Champions League.

Costa’s stunning form then earned him a £32m move to Chelsea last summer and his 17 goals have helped Jose Mourinho’s side go five points clear at the top of the table and on course to winning the title.

READ MORE –> Chelsea transfer news | Liverpool transfer news

For Liverpool, it’s a case of what might have been as not only did they miss out on Costa in 2013 but Suarez ended up leaving the following summer to be replaced by Mario Balotelli – whose only managed to score once since joining from AC Milan.