CHELSEA’S KURT ZOUMA has apologised for any confusion after labelling Diego Costa a ”cheat”.
Combative forward Costa found himself at the centre of on-field controversy after engaging in a prolonged on-field dispute with Arsenal centre-back Gabriel in Saturday’s Premier League clash at Stamford Bridge,
It followed an incident where he put his hands in the face fellow visiting defender Laurent Koscielny.
To the amazement of many observers, Gabriel was sent off by referee Mike Dean, while Costa remained on the field to help Chelsea to a 2-0 win over their rivals.
Both players have charged by the FA this evening — Costa for violent conduct and Gabriel for improper conduct. The two clubs also face a charge for failing to control their players.
They have until 6pm on Thursday to appeal.
Centre-back Kurt Zouma opened the scoring for Jose Mourinho’s team and, speaking to beIN Sport after the match, he seemed to conced that Costa plays on the edge of the rules as a tactic to rile opponents.
“We’re not surprised because we know Diego,” Zouma said. “Everyone knows Diego and this guy likes to cheat a lot and put the opponent out of his game.
That happened in the game but he’s a really nice guy. We’re proud to have him, like the other players, and we’re happy to win this game.”
However, the French defender has since taken to Twitter to blame the comments on his poor grasp of the English language.
