Former Arsenal central defender Martin Keown has made his opinion extremely clear that he believed Diego Costa deserved a place in the recently announced PFA Team of the Year, with Harry Kane being the striker who Keown would have replaced.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, as reported by Football London, he stated, “I would select Diego Costa over Harry Kane. At the moment, Costa is the better player – though Kane is not far away.”
Both Kane and Romelu Lukaku were chosen in the forward positions, with their goal tallies currently this season reaching 24 and 20 respectively.
Costa however has 17 goals, with only three since the new year. Not only has his goals tally ground to a halt, but his overall performance has worryingly declined in the last few months.
Despite that, Keown states, “In a one vs one Costa has caused defenders so many problems this season.
“Romelu Lukaku is similar to Costa in that they are both powerful forwards but Costa is tidier in his work.” he added.
The Spanish striker has also proved his big game influence at essential times this season, especially the second half of Manchester City away, in which he single-handedly carried Chelsea to three points. This trait he possesses is rarely found in strikers and does beg the question as to why he was not selected with the elite group of players this season.
However in Spain, when playing for Atletico Madrid, the Spaniard had a tendency to go through patches of tremendous form, yet also portray at times a frustrated future, with a target only to become involved in an altercation with another player.
This has also been prevalent in his patchy form in England, and currently, it seems to be the frustrated, unhappy figure that is being portrayed by the player. During the final stretch of the season, for Antonio Conte, it is imperative that he finds a way to draw out the best in Costa, as we reach the defining moments regarding the title race.
With Chelsea involved in an FA Cup semi-final against Tottenham, the quality and clinical finishing of both forwards, Costa and Kane will be pivotal in determining who reaches the final of the prestigious competition.
