Mourinho calls for fair treatment of Costa

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has once again leapt to the defence of Diego Costa by claiming the striker is being unfairly portrayed in the media.

Costa was banned retrospectively for three matches by the Football Association after tangling with Arsenal’s Laurent Koscielny last month, but returned from his suspension to play a key role in Saturday’s 2-0 Premier League win over Aston Villa.

It was Costa who opened the scoring at Stamford Bridge before his shot was deflected in for an Alan Hutton own goal that sealed the points for the champions.

And Mourinho believes the media’s coverage of Costa is unfair, claiming they do not show opposition players attempting to provoke the Spain international.

Costa was involved in a brief skirmish with Villa’s Ashley Westwood on Saturday and Mourinho said: “I’m pleased he didn’t react, but I would be even happier if the people who find his hypothetical or real negative moments were honest the other way and show and show and show.

“He will be targeted until the moment people point the finger at them and show the images, re-show the images and have the top pundits speaking about it.

“When you lose him we’re a bit in trouble because the team always depends on a striker like him, from a character and personality like him.

“Diego isn’t a leader in the dressing room, he doesn’t even speak English well, but in the game, the way he plays, the way he gives his body to the cause is brilliant.”