DIEGO COSTA is edging closer to a return to Europe with a move to Rayo Vallecano.
The former Chelsea striker last played for Brazil’s Atletico Mineiro in 2021 after leaving Atletico Madrid in 2020.
Costa last played for Atletico Mineiro at the end of 2021
The deal to bring him back to Spain now appears all but done with the 33-year-old hoping he can terrorise La Liga defenders all over again.
The move would mean he would also reunite with fellow attacker Radamel Falcao, with the pair sharing a dressing room briefly at Chelsea and more memorably at Atletico Madrid where they formed a formidable frontline.
Falcao signed for the Spanish club a year ago and it means that mid-table Rayo Vallecano now have two strikers who were among the most feared in Europe over the last decade.
Marca report that the deal is done and will be announced soon.
They say the negotiations were led by Rayo club president Raul Martin Presa, who also took the lead when Falcao signed a year ago.
Then the 36-year-old striker was in the process of rebuilding his reputation after a couple of botched loan moves to Manchester United and then Chelsea.
Costa will reportedly sign a one year contract which has the option of a further year.
Rayo will be hoping their strike force can find the net with regularity, especially given the fact that the club scored fewer goals than two of the three sides relegated from La Liga last season.
The move also represents a return for Costa, who played for Rayo Vallecano on loan ten years ago.
His ten goals in 16 games helped keep them up in the 2011/12 season.
Premier League fans will best remember Costa for his three years at Chelsea, where he won the title twice but eventually fell out with his boss Antonio Conte.
