Yes he returned from suspension for the demolition of Stoke on Saturday which kept Chelsea six points clear at the top thanks to their 13th successive victory, but cynics will suggest that only his second booking of the season was a deliberate ploy to enjoy an extended Christmas break. He netted the fourth, inevitably, which keeps him as the league’s leading goalscorer, two ahead of Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez. But fresh rumour and speculation will again accompany Diego Costa’s future, with reports that China are ready to throw their vast resources his way in a bid to add the striker to their revolution. Costa’s words will only add fuel to the fire. “I wanted to go [last summer].

GETTY Diego Costa admits he wanted to leave Chelsea in the summer

GETTY Diego Costa had a strong relationship with Diego Simeone

"I was about to leave. There were family reasons for wanting to go back to Atletico Madrid, but it wasn’t to be and now I’m happy here. And I’m content. “The people at Chelsea love me a lot and the manager, Antonio Conte, told me he counted on me. He is someone we can talk to, somebody whose support we can count on. He is calm with the players. He is not just a boss but a person too and you can see that people love him.” Conte has been widely credited for toning down the aggression in Costa – something many said could not be done without losing some of the talent. But Costa too should be praised for his transformation. “The team has changed from last year, not just me. But I wasn’t the player I should have been, because there were various issues. Now things are changed and we are a real team.

Five things we learned about Chelsea against Stoke Sat, December 31, 2016 Click through the gallery to reveal five things we learned about Chelsea against Stoke Play slideshow Getty Images 1 of 5 1. Strength in depth will seal the title for Chelsea. Cesc Fabregas and Willian were outstanding today

“If you work hard and there is not a good atmosphere, the work doesn’t mean a thing especially if there is no spirit. But work goes well if you give your best with the colleagues beside you. “But I know what I have to do still and I know when I do bad things. I had to improve that part of me because in the Premier League there is no mercy.” His bullying play drew him into the kind of confrontations that at one time threatened his future at the club. "I knew I had to get better because it seemed so many were against me,” he said. “There is no other way because, if they are not going to change, I had to.” Costa’s disciplinary indiscretions put him on a crash course with authority, but his goals this season have helped him become perhaps the most dangerous front man in the world.

GETTY Diego Costa credited Antonio Conte for his turnaround

Next up for Chelsea – and another test for Costa – is Tottenham on Wednesday and the chance to equal Arsenal’s run of 14 successive wins, which was set over two seasons in 2002. The fixture last season was pumped full of ego and aggression; the type of game the Costa of old might have been at the heart of for the wrong reasons. Not so this time around. “It’s a derby and one we will both want to win,” he said. “It will be played with a little more strength but there’s no problem there.” Gary Cahill had opened the scoring for Chelsea, with Willian adding the second and third, before Costa’s aggressive master piece.