Wolves News: Diego Costa is back in the Premier League, and could make his Wolverhampton Wanderers debut against league champions Manchester City.
Wolves have formally announced the signing of the two-time Premier League champion, who has signed for one year.
Costa, whose contract was due to expire at the beginning of 2022, responded to Bruno Lage’s SOS to guarantee his return to English football.
Costa, who scored 59 goals in 120 games for Chelsea, had been left without a club after leaving Brazilian champions Atletico Mineiro early. Wolves have turned to the experienced striker because they desperately need offensive reinforcements.
Wolves News: Costa to replace Sasa Kalajdzic
After the summer transfer window closed, Wanderers manager Lage was pressured into action. His star striker, Sasa Kalajdzic, tore her anterior cruciate ligament minutes after his Molineux debut.
And with Raúl Jiménez struggling with his own fitness and form issues, the Wolves scoured the list of potential free agents before settling on Costa.
The arrangement was in jeopardy earlier this week when it became clear that he was not automatically eligible for a work permit.
You did not accumulate enough points to be automatically eligible for a Governing Body Endorsement because you have been inactive for a significant portion of the year. Because the Wolves were forced to appeal the verdict, a deal can be struck if the panel rules in their favor.
Following a series of fitness tests to determine if he was still up to the demands of the Premier League, Costa traveled to the Midlands on Wednesday night. But now that those are over, he joins a side that have only scored three goals in their first six league games.
His most recent goal came in victory over Southampton at Molineux on Saturday, which was his first league win of the year.
Intimidating matches for Costa to start
He joins the Wolves for a challenging sequence of games that could start with a showdown against Man City. With the Queen’s state funeral scheduled for next Monday, the Premier League has yet to formally clarify whether the games will take place that weekend (September 19).
Costa will then have another two weeks to regain his composure before facing West Ham early next month. Then there is the exciting possibility that the fiery veteran will return to the venue where he was so successful to take on Chelsea a week later.
