Chelsea came into yesterday’s game at the King Power in the midst of the biggest scandal at the club since Jose Mourinho’s departure. Top of the league and showing title-winning form, everything had been going so smoothly for the Blues until the shock news that Diego Costa was to be dropped from the squad for the Leicester game.
The story in the media was that the striker had had his head turned by a colossal offer from China, and that he had had an argument on the training pitch this week with a fitness coach.
Chelsea have denied this, with manager Antonio Conte assuring journalists in the post-game press conference that his star forward’s absence was all down to a back problem.
We still don’t know what’s happening with Costa at the moment, or which of the two parties to believe. The truth will likely be somewhere in the middle, as it usually is in these situations. But what we do know is how the Chelsea players responded on the pitch to the tremors that could have shaken the foundations of this team.
The Blues came out without their star forward and showed calmness and class to dispatch Leicester 3-0. Players all across the pitch excelled, and the team produced a performance to reassure any doubters who might have raised questions after the loss to Tottenham. After each goal, the team bundled together to celebrate in a clear show of unity in the face of pressure.
The way the goals were celebrated told you exactly what you needed to know: this team has great winning spirit that Conte has fostered with skill since his arrival. The sudden media storm that barraged the team following the Costa rumours only served to bring them closer together, and they showed no signs of weakness or division in the face of this pressure.
With any luck, the Costa story will pass, he will be reintegrated back into the side and will carry on where he left off: firing us to the Premier League title. But even if he is never seen in Blue again, this team has proved yesterday that they can still play at their best without him; and perhaps even that by bringing them together in the face of a common enemy – either Costa himself or the media who have created a story from nothing – his loss could inspire this team to even greater heights.
On the evidence of yesterday the only thing more dangerous than this Chelsea team with Costa leading the line is this Chelsea team feeling like they’re cornered, with the world against them.
And that is a scary prospect.
