Wednesday, 14th August, 2013

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers' hunch over Diego Costa has officially come true as Atletico Madrid have announced a three-year extension to his contract.

The Reds had been pursuing Costa this summer, and were even understood to have made a bid for him, which Atletico denied.

 


Roma attempted a late salvo, even as Rodgers predicted last week that the forward was due to pen the extension.

Amid all this, concerns over his future had played a small role, but Atletico have taken no chances in ensuring last season's 20-goal man is theirs until 2018.

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"I thank the club for making me this offer to spend more time here", Costa told Atletico's official site after signing the agreement.

"I hope to become a much bigger player and help achieve all of the team's objectives.

"I am delighted with this agreement after fighting for a long time to win the respect and affection of the fans, the peers and people in the club.

"I am very happy here and this is a very special moment."

Costa has already spent seven years with Atletico over two spells, but has played a total of just 83 games due to several loan stints in Spain during that time.

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