Zouma apologises for Costa 'cheat' remark

Chelsea centre-back Kurt Zouma has apologised for 'any confusion' caused by his comments about striker Diego Costa in the wake of his side's 2-0 victory over Arsenal.

The Blues defender indicated Costa was a player who "likes to cheat a lot" after the incident filled encounter at Stamford Bridge, which saw the Spain international get involved in an off-the-ball altercation with Gunners centre-back Gabriel.

Gabriel was subsequently shown a red card after lashing out at Costa, who avoided picking up his second yellow card of the afternoon in the process.

Zouma appeared to indicate the Chelsea players were aware of Costa's antics, but were happy with him nonetheless.

However, Zouma has since moved to diffuse any anger stemming from his comments, claiming his words were taken out of context.

"Sorry for any confusion. English is not my first language. I did not mean to accuse anyone of cheating," Zouma said.

A Chelsea spokesperson added: "It's harsh to take literally the words of a young player spoken in his second language immediately after a game.

"He is deeply upset his words have been used to attack a team-mate and friend."