• Chronicle: Atletico does not wake him or the trident in Valladolid

Of the eight shots of Diego Costa that appear in the official LaLiga statistics, only one finished in goal. It happened in Son Moix, in front of Mallorca, two days ago. Simeone's party in the band contrasted with the coldness of the striker. And that did not mark in the official match since March 30. Yesterday, in the Atlético goalless draw in Valladolid, he went back to the locker room without having thrown in the door. What would be a novelty at any other time in his career, is today an almost recurring fact. Of those eight pitches, he only found goal in the afternoon that scored his only goal. “He lacks continuity and does not give in to the challenge that lies ahead of reversing numbers that are not normal in his career. This challenge will make him angry and he will obviously find his best version, ”Simeone encouraged him in the previous bland draw against José Zorrilla. The nth message of support from his technician did not work either.

The real Costa, that wild and hipster player, was last seen in New Jersey, during that famous win in the preseason derby (3-7). His four goals to Real Madrid, with a red card as a farewell by a spark with Carvajal, seemed to predict that he would be back in time. The summer preparation ended, the first complete since his return to Madrid, with five goals and optimal sensations. In addition, his connection with Joao Felix , whom he has not lost sight of since his arrival, hinted that it could be one of the keys to this new Atlético. The Portuguese, precisely, served against Eibar his only course attendance.

«The strikers have all my support. You have to wait, ”Simeone calmly admitted, after his team's third goalless draw in the last four LaLiga games. Atlético have only scored seven times in the eight games played. Up to 11 teams outperform him in that aspect. The case is that Costa is with a famous average scoring 0.14 goals per duel, worse than even 0.15 that already dragged in its very discreet past course. A season marked by his operation in the foot and the expulsion in the Camp Nou (it cost him eight matches).

Your worst average

But more than a matter of numbers (Morata has also scored a single goal and a penalty has failed), it is a matter of sensations. His apathy in the recent Metropolitan derby, where he did not raise any battle, or his failure to empty door in Moscow, in front of the Lokomotiv, when he only had to push the ball are unambiguous signs that it is not just a matter of aim.

The forward left for Chelsea after scoring 36 goals in that Atlético Liga champion (13/14) and since his return in January 2018, he has only achieved 13 goals and 11 assists . Precisely that change of air led him to have to go through the courts after an erroneous taxation. On Friday he visited the court and pleaded guilty to a tax offense of 1.1 million euros.

Costa, who turns 31 today, has a contract until 2021 and his salary, around eight million euros, is only surpassed by that of Jan Oblak in the rojiblanco dressing room. "It is difficult to know what goes through your head ...", admitted this summer from the offices of the Madrid club about his future. Outside the national team since the World Cup in Russia, he will have two weeks to recover morale.

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