Diego Costa has touched down in Spain as he prepares to complete a return to Atlético Madrid from Premier League champions Chelsea.
The Spain striker, who left Atlético for the Blues in 2014, is set to undergo a medical before signing for a club-record fee of around 65m euros, and is expected to be in the stands for the team's home LaLiga clash with Sevilla on Saturday.
Costa lands in Madrid: "Atléticos, a friend says hi!"
After his arrival in Madrid from his native Brazil on Friday, the club posted a photo of a smiling Costa on their official Twitter account, accompanied by the message: "Atléticos, a friend says hi!".
Atléticos, a friend says hi! pic.twitter.com/l9AzyL9ou8
— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) 22 September 2017
"I'm very happy to be back home. Everyone knew that I wanted to rejoin Atlético Madrid and I'm very grateful for the effort that [club CEO] Miguel Ángel Gil Marín has made," the 28-year-old told the media at the Spanish capital's Barajas airport.
Costa expects to be worked hard as he returns to fitness
Having missed Chelsea's pre-season as he sought to push through his move, Costa - who Atleti cannot register until the winter window - has until January to regain full fitness, and is braced for a tough training regime.
"I'm in good shape physically. I'm not afraid about stepping back onto the scales," he said. "But I am afraid about [fitness coach Óscar] 'Profe' Ortega's training sessions."
