Mourinho will evaluate Diego Costa's 'state of mind' ahead of Bournemouth match

Chelsea might have had a good performance yesterday against Tottenham at White Hart Lane but most headlines following the clash have focused on Diego Costa's "hissy fit" on the sidelines instead. Mourinho has already claimed that it's not an issue of course, but that's not going to be enough to change the narrative at the moment. Chelsea vice-captain Branislav Ivanovic, meanwhile, thinks it'll help the striker rediscover his strengths as well as remember that it's a team game, first and foremost.

"I expect Diego to come back strongly. I think we start the season as a team and we have to finish as a team. This is important. When we start losing, we all know it's not about the one or two players playing badly or playing well. It's about the team.

"Diego didn't play against Tottenham, but I know he'll be ready for the next game. He scored against Norwich - the winning goal. It's all about the team at the moment. I think we all have to think about that. Sometimes for a player who isn't playing it's difficult, but it is a normal situation for the club."

-Branislav Ivanovic; source: Telegraph

According to Matt Law from the Telegraph, the manager is willing to give a chance to Costa to prove himself on the pitch next weekend against Bournemouth, if Mourinho finds the striker to be ready to turn his anger into a good performance.  It's unclear what would happen if Costa continued to be not ready.

Over the past few weeks, following similar stories from the summer, rumours from Spain emerged that Diego Costa was unsettled in London, and that he looked to move out of the city, and therefore out of Chelsea, to get back to Atlético Madrid. But even if true, there's still a whole month and 6 matches before the next transfer window and neither Radamel Falcao nor Loïc Rémy have looked too impressive in their limited opportunities this season.

The second "Eden Hazard as a center forward" trial at Chelsea worked better than the first time it was tried, but the team still lacked the thrust provided by Costa himself last season. Especially at home, against a weaker team, Mourinho would probably like to have a proper center forward once gain.  Whether Costa gets another chance to prove himself despite his antics remains to be seen however.