Chelsea striker Diego Costa: I'd be banned for five games if I gave my opinion on referees

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James Benge6 January 2017

Diego Costa has refused to be drawn on his opinion of English referees for fear of receiving “a four or five-game ban”.

Premier League officials have found themselves in the spotlight during the Christmas break with decisions over incidents involving Sofiane Feghouli, Fernandinho and Simon Francis.

Few can speak on referees with as much authority as Chelsea's Costa, who has received 24 yellow cards and a red since arriving at Chelsea in the summer of 2014. However he could not be tempted to join in the with those Premier League managers who have bemoaned the standard of officiating in recent weeks.

“I’ll be honest, I’m a target here. Be it for referees or for fans," Costa told Onda Cero.

“If I do something it’s very different to the other players.

“I’m not going to talk about English referees because I could get a suspension for four or five games if I did that!”

The Chelsea striker’s disciplinary problems appear to have eased in recent months; after picking up four bookings in his first six league games he managed to avoid a ban for 10 matches before receiving a fifth yellow.

Costa has been sanctioned three times for off the ball incidents at Chelsea in a total of seven suspensions.

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