Diego Costa: Sao Paulo FC join transfer race as striker rejects another offer from Saudi Arabia

Posted Tuesday, February 23, 2021 by Skysports.com

Sao Paulo FC have joined the race for Diego Costa, who has rejected another offer from a team in Saudi Arabia.

Costa has been in talks over a move to Palmeiras but their fierce local rivals Sao Paulo are said to have approached him within the last week.

Talks with Palmeiras have also been impacted by renewed interest from Al Nassr, who offered the striker a deal worth £5.2m (€6m) until the summer of 2022.

The ex-Chelsea and Atletico Madrid man wanted a deal worth £6.9m (€8m) for the same length of time, however - and Al Nassr appear to have backed away.

Sky Sports News exclusively revealed earlier this month that Palmeiras were offering Costa a two-year deal worth around £2.6m per year after tax - and the player is currently in Brazil.

Palmeiras boss Abel Ferreira has since denied there are any negotiations ongoing with the former Braga forward.

Palmeiras are the club Costa supported as a boy and he is said to want to finish his career playing in his native Brazil.

Since leaving Atletico in January, the 32-year-old has also held talks with clubs in Turkey and Qatar.

He was offered to clubs in the Premier League too, with one top-six team offering him a deal until the end of the season - but he also turned that down.

Costa is said to prefer a two-year deal with whomever he signs for next.

Costa began his career as a youth for Sao Paulo-based side Barcelona Esportivo Capela before moving to Portugal to begin his senior career with Braga.

He signed for Atletico Madrid just a year later but did not break into the first team until the 2010-11 season, after various spells out on loan. It was not until the 2013-14 season that he really made his name, scoring 36 goals in all competitions.

In the summer of 2014, Costa signed for Chelsea where he was immediately prolific under Jose Mourinho, scoring 20 Premier League goals on his way to the title in his first season.

He returned to Atletico in 2018 with 59 goals in more than 100 appearances and two Premier League titles to his name.

Although born and raised in Brazil and twice playing for his country, Costa qualified to play for Spain after becoming a citizen, having only played for Brazil in friendly matches, and he went on to score 10 goals for them.