Chelsea’s Diego Costa is a master of tricks and is a big reason in Blues’ rise to the top of the Premier League

I HAVE a message to all those who say Diego Costa has finally got his game under control: It always was.

Costa is in the form of his life right now and is the reason, above all others, why Chelsea are on top of the table.

There are plenty of people who reckon it’s all down to the fact he has calmed down — and they point to no bookings since the Arsenal defeat two months ago as proof.

Keep up to date with ALL the Chelsea news, gossip, transfers and goals on our club page plus fixtures, results and live match commentary by clicking

Yet to me, even when Costa was picking up yellow cards, he remained massively in control.

Yes, he landed in the referee’s notebook plenty of times. But he always knew how far to push it.

He’d have picked up far more than a single red card in his time at Stamford Bridge if that wasn’t the case.

Diego is always going to be one of those players who Chelsea fans adore, and the rest absolutely detest.

As someone who had his fair share of skirmishes and, it’s safe to say, was never exactly a favourite with opposition supporters, I’ve got nothing but admiration for him.

Costa is a player who gets in the psyche of defenders even before they are on the pitch. Someone they’ll be thinking of days before the game. He is the master of all those tricks I used to try in my playing days, when you’d look for anything to give you that slight advantage.

I remember playing against Luke Young and Claus Lundekvam in particular. I’d give them a little pinch just to let them know I was there, to let them know I wouldn’t give them a moment’s peace.

Michael Duberry told me once how I was a hero of his growing up, but how he hated me when we played against each other.

And I remember scratching Neil Ruddock’s neck once to remind him I was about and telling him: “Explain that one away to the missus.”

To be honest, there were probably a few players who went home with similar scratches and told the wife: “Oh, it’s because I was up against Wrighty today!”

The point being, you’d try to annoy defenders, anything to knock them off their guard.

Pulling them, grabbing them — nothing really nasty — just to have them looking where you are all the time. Costa is someone who does that naturally.

But anyone who thinks he is just a goalscorer has it totally wrong. I noticed the stats from Chelsea’s 5-0 win over Everton recently.

Costa made 77 sprints in that match. Romelu Lukaku made 24.

That’s a phenomenal work-rate from the Chelsea striker and is why defenders can never drop their guard.

Nothing is ever a lost cause where this man is concerned — he’s as sharp as a tack.

You saw that with his winning goal at Middlesbrough on Sunday.

Costa had no right to get to a ball he was third favourite to reach first, but while the defenders dithered, he reacted like lightning and it was game over.

That made it ten goals for him this season — seven more than at the same stage a year ago — and six straight wins for Chelsea.

But don’t tell me that’s all down to bringing a new-found sense of control to his game.

Costa is always a man who will play on the edge, always a man who will get under your skin.

And I wouldn’t want to see him any other way.