Atletico Madrid are preparing to lodge an offer of £26million in the coming days for Chelsea striker Diego Costa despite the club’s transfer ban, according to a report in The Mirror.
The newspaper claim that the La Liga club want Costa to make a return to the Vicente Calderon Stadium in January when they will be free to trade again.
The Mirror claim that the Spanish club are planning to table a bid of £26million plus performance-related add-ons for the centre-forward this week in an attempt to wrap up the deal in the current window.
The striker moved to Chelsea from the Spanish giants for a higher amount of £32 million back in 2014, and with add-ons the figure could give the Blues their funds back.
For Atletico to acquire their former striker back, the Spaniard would ideally remain at Stamford Bridge until the end of December.
However, following recent public disagreements with manager Antonio Conte and the pair’s turbulent relationship it would appear unlikely for the 28-year-old to stay for the beginning of the season.
It is said that the Chelsea boss informed the Spanish international that he wouldn’t be part of his 2017/18 campaign plans over text message, which would suggest that the Brazilian-born star would want to make an exit during the summer.
Costa made a valuable contribution for Chelsea last season showing his scoring capability after he netted 20 goals during his 35 Premier League appearances for the Blues.
Madrid are keen to sign their former player back, but after the Spanish club’s transfer ban was upheld at the beginning of June, it would remain doubtful.
The ban was imposed on the club after they breached rules surrounding the transfers of under 18 foreign players, which means the club won’t be able to sign any new players until 2018.