Diego Costa looked a beaten man as he was given a taste of his own medicine, in Chelsea’ s 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford.

Manchester United’s centre-back pairing of Eric Bailly and Marcos Rojo singled Costa out for special attention from the outset, a tactic that clearly brought out the best in the latter. The Argentinian international relished the battle throughout, putting in one of his best performances in a United shirt.

Seeing Costa coming off a clear second best in a physical confrontation must be a worry for Chelsea fans but perhaps more alarming is how his general form has dipped since being linked with a move to China in January.

Stats from Oulala highlight the extent of the problem and Antonio Conte must now decide whether or not to persist with the out of sorts striker.

Costa’s direct involvement in Premier League goals scored by Chelsea has dropped from an impressive goal or assist every 88 minutes to a disappointing 329 minutes since news regarding a proposed move to China surfaced.

The Blues face a rampant Spurs in the FA Cup semi-finals at the weekend, where more questions are expected to be asked of Costa, assuming he starts.

The North London side have closed the gap at the top of table to just 4 points – eliminating Chelsea from the FA Cup would be another feather in their cap.

If they can accomplish this, then the crisis talk will surely intensify at Stamford Bridge!

Diego Costa was a fantasy ‘must-have’ in the first part of the season but managers have been deserting him by the week of late, so it will be fascinating to see If he can reverse that trend with an improved showing against Tottenham Hotspur in Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final.