Photo: Getty Images/Clive Brunskill

Diego Costa was infamously labelled as one of the rats in the Chelsea dressing room during Jose Mourinho’s tumultuous reign as Chelsea manager in his final season at the club.

However, Costa’s recent statement has proven that he wasn’t in any way against the former Chelsea boss, as he heaped praises on the Portuguese, while claiming he came to Chelsea because of him.

“In all honesty I always tell people that I am grateful to Mourinho because he helped me a lot,” he said in an interview with Thierry Henry for Sky Sports.

“As a player when you want to improve you always look for the best coach and Mourinho is one of the best.”

He added: “He helped me a lot and then what happened is that the following season didn’t go well, these things that happen, but the truth is that Mourinho helped me a lot to improve as a player.”