According to the Mirror, Chelsea are closing in on a £50 million deal with Atletico Madrid for the transfer of Diego Costa, after Atletico manager Diego Simeone hinted at a deal being in place for the summer.

Chelsea will have a lot of interaction with Atletico as a club over the next few months. The Blues have been drawn against the Spanish outfit in the semi-final stage of the UEFA Champions League. The sides will play two legs to decide the tie with Thibaut Courtois being cleared to play against his parent club. Atletico want Courtois on a fourth consecutive loan spell in Spain, and Chelsea will have to make a decision on the Belgian’s future, and that of current number one Petr Cech.

The supporters will fear the repercussions of the £50 million price tag, after seeing Fernando Torres lose form with the pressure of the price tag after his move from Liverpool. Costa has been in sparkling form this season, and has scored 26 goals from 32 appearances in the league. The 25-year old joined Atletico in 2010, and could well leave for Chelsea in the summer as the Madrid club are most adept at moving on their top stars for a profit and buying excellent replacements at reasonable prices with manager Simeone central to the club’s transfer policy.