Atletico Madrid president, Enrique Cerezo, has once again expressed his desire to bring Diego Costa back to Spain. Costa was linked with a return to Atletico last summer, and back in June he said that he wished to bring the striker back to his former club.

Costa has been linked with a move to the Chinese Super League in January. He was involved in a training ground bust-up with Chelsea manager, Antonio Conte, and was dropped for the Blues’ away trip to Leicester City.

Earlier this week, Chinese Super League club, Tianjin Quanjian, had reached a pre-contract agreement with Costa. The deal would see them pay Costa a massive €30m a year. Costa, who is under contract until June 2019, has denied those reports, and instead stated his commitment to Chelsea.

Cerezo told Cadena Cope radio:

It has been a while since I spoke to him. He is at a great club. They [media] say he will go to China, but Chelsea will not allow him to leave.

I would love for Costa to return but it’s not easy. He plays for a strong team, a team that is likely to win the Premier League. I don’t think the big teams will allow their top players to leave.

Costa scored 27 league goals in 2013-14 for Atletico, and helped the Rojiblancos win the La Liga title and reach the 2014 Champions League final before moving to Chelsea.

He has been enjoying a great campaign for the Blues this season as well, having scored 15 league goals in 22 starts so far.