'Thinks he knows everything!' - Diego Costa claims 'nobody liked' Antonio Conte at Chelsea in explosive new interview

Costa had spent two seasons at Chelsea before Conte's arrival. He won his first Premier League title under previous manager Jose Mourinho before a horrendous championship defence where the 'Special One' was sacked and the west London side ended up finishing tenth.

The former Spain international was an instant hit at Stamford Bridge thanks to his prolific goalscoring and fiery temperament, bagging 20 strikes and being named in the PFA Team of the Year in 2014-15. After the disappointment of 2015-16, Conte arrived and implemented his trademark formation after a difficult start to the campaign. Chelsea won an incredible 13 games in a row to establish themselves as title favourites and suffered only two more defeats throughout the rest of the 2016-17 campaign after being beaten by Tottenham, eventually finishing at the top of the pile, seven points ahead of Spurs.

However, Costa and Conte didn't always see eye to eye, and the striker rejoined Atletico in the 2018 January transfer window.

Costa was left out of Chelsea's squad for an away match against Leicester in January 2017 after reportedly being involved in a dispute with a fitness coach, which led to a heated row with Conte. It coincided with the striker being offered an incredible £30 million-a-season contract (€34.4m/$38m) from a Chinese Super League club, with Conte allegedly shouting "go to China" during their argument.

The transfer did not go through, however, and Costa was reintegrated into the first-team squad later in January, eventually helping the Blues win another league title. At the end of the season, Conte texted members of the Chelsea squad to wish them well for the summer break and reminded them to stay fit, with Costa sending a jokey reply back.

However, Conte followed up his initial message by adding: "Hi Diego, I hope you are well. Thanks for the season we spent together. Good luck for the next year but you are not in my plan."

A summer saga ensued and Costa eventually sealed a return to former club Atletico Madrid, although he couldn't play until January 2018 because of a transfer embargo the Spanish side had been placed under.

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Now, in a preview of an upcoming episode of John Obi Mikel's podcast, Costa revisited the feud and claimed his Chelsea team-mates were similarly dissatisfied working under the current Napoli manager.

He said: "He is a person who doesn’t trust others. He thinks he knows everything. You don’t enjoy training with him, he’s always angry, always with a long face. The players wanted to come back but nobody liked him and that’s why he didn’t last long. The past is the past."

Costa added: "For me, Mourinho, personally, was the coach that I enjoyed the most. This is because he gives you life. You come to training happy."

Costa ended up scoring 19 goals in 81 appearances during his second spell with Atletico, helping Diego Simeone's side win the 2020-21 La Liga title - though his contract had been terminated by December that season - the Europa League and a UEFA Super Cup.

He returned to Brazil, the country of his birth, to spend a campaign with Atletico Mineiro before moving back to England to play for Wolverhampton Wanderers. He would score only once in 25 appearances for the West Midlands side and left after one season, later spending time with Botafogo and Gremio. His contract with the latter expired in 2024 but the 37-year-old has not yet officially retired from competitive football.

Conte, meanwhile, remains in charge at Napoli. They were held to a 1-1 draw by Copenhagen in the Champions League on Tuesday night despite having a player's advantage for most of the game after Thomas Delaney was sent off. That result was described as "unacceptable" by midfielder Scott McTominay, with the Serie A side now in serious danger of missing out on the knockout stages, sitting 23rd in the table with only eight points before Wednesday's slate of games.