Diego Costa insists he would only leave Chelsea for return to former club Atletico Madrid

Diego Costa has insisted he would only leave Chelsea for a return to his former club Atletico Madrid.

After being linked with a move to Tianjin Quanjian midway through the season following an alleged training ground bust-up with manager Antonio Conte, speculation over the forward’s Chelsea future has once again emerged.

But speaking in the wake of Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat by Arsenal in the FA Cup final, Costa stressed he has no desire to leave the Blues and would only consider Atletico should he depart from the west London club.

"I will only leave Chelsea for Atletico," Costa said. "If not, I will stay here. I'm not interested in other clubs.

"I have a contract and no intention of leaving, but if there are changes to be made that might reduce my chances, if the coach won't count on me anymore or is to give space for another striker, I know that I'll have to leave.

"Everyone know what my preferred club is, there's nothing to hide."

Costa spent four years at Atletico between 2010 and 2014, scoring 43 league goals from 94 appearances during his time there.

He joined Chelsea for £32m in the summer of 2014 and has gone on to win two Premier League titles and one League Cup with the club.

The Spaniard added after Saturday’s defeat that he was “grateful” for what he has at Chelsea and has set his sights on a place at next year’s World Cup.

“Money is good, but I'm grateful for what I have right now and I have other things to look forward to, like playing the next World Cup,” he said.

“I know that I have a chance to be called if I'm playing well and at a high level, that's something I want.”

Costa scored his 21st goal of the season to drag 10-man Chelsea level at Wembley following Alexis Sanchez’s first half opener – only for Aaron Ramsey to strike three minutes later with the winning goal.

The 28-year-old admitted that his side were fairly beaten on this occasion by their London rivals.

“I guess we were a little off coming into the match, while Arsenal showed they wanted to win it,” he conceded.

“They scored once and had the chance for a second during the first 45. We came better for the second half and scored the equaliser, but they went ahead soon after.

“It happens, I want to congratulate them for the fine display.”