The Stats That Show Diego Costa Has Stepped Out of Didier Drogba’s Shadow

It seems that Chelsea’s Diego Costa couldn’t be more like Didier Drogba, even if he tried.

Now in his third season at Stamford Bridge, the Spain international continues to make no secret of his affections for former club Atletico Madrid. Much like when Drogba joined Chelsea from Marseille in 2004, Costa’s feeling homesick.

“A little,” was the striker’s response this week when asked by Spanish media if he misses Madrid, per ESPN. “I like Madrid a lot, have had some very happy moments here. But I’m very happy in London. I always follow Atletico and watch what they’re doing. They’re doing really well, and I am so happy for them.”

We heard similar from Drogba over a decade ago. He was struggling to settle in the Premier League and was often on the back pages for all the wrong reasons. Sound familiar?

That’s all off the pitch, of course. On it, Costa isn’t just replicating Drogba’s goalscoring form in Chelsea blue—he’s beginning to surpass it.

The mere mention of Drogba’s name has been enough to crumble the confidence of strikers in west London. The Ivorian’s shadow is cast so far and wide that few have ever come close to matching his exploits.

It takes a special sort of character to overcome that; it takes a player of Costa’s mettle. He’s showing signs of maturing into Drogba’s long-term replacement. The heir to the throne is getting ready to take his seat.

Statistics don’t lie. Yes, we can manipulate them to tell part of a story, but compare Costa and Drogba, and we see a pattern that is emerging. Take this season, for instance.

In 2006/07, Drogba had his breakthrough campaign in a Chelsea shirt. The penny dropped; it was the time when he started to truly deliver on that £24 million investment. His perceived attempts at feigning injury and conning referees were replaced with goals. Simply by staying on his feet, Drogba became unplayable, and Chelsea fans loved him for it.

From scoring 16 goals in each of his first two seasons at Chelsea, Drogba doubled that …

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