Football: Soccer-Botafogo sign former Chelsea striker Diego Costa

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – Brazil’s Serie A leaders Botafogo have signed Diego Costa on a free transfer, the Brazilian club said on Saturday, with the former Chelsea and Atletico Madrid striker being parachuted in amid an ongoing injury crisis.

Former Porto striker Tiquinho Soares, the Brazilian league top goalscorer and player of the month for first three consecutive times since the tournament started in April, sustained a knee ligament injury on Botafogo’s 0-0 draw at Cruzeiro last weekend leaving the team thin up-front.

Costa, 34, was a free agent after leaving Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers in June and will sign a four-month deal with Botafogo, who are dominating the Brazilian league with 14 wins in 18 games, building a 12-point lead atop.

Botafogo are also bidding for their second Copa Sudamericana title as they face Argentina’s Defensa y Justicia in the quarter-finals.

“I’m very happy to have been chosen to be part of the family. Thanks and I see you soon,” Costa said in his social media on Saturday.

“Botafogo continues to build a quality squad and will count on the experience of Diego Costa, a 34-year-old striker, on a contract signed until the end of 2023,” the club said.

“Diego will arrive in Rio de Janeiro in the coming days and will be reunited with coach Bruno Lage, with whom he worked at Wolverhampton in England.”

Costa built a reputation as a formidable number nine at Chelsea between 2014-2017, scoring 59 goals in all competitions and guiding the London club to two Premier League titles after he signed for a 32-million-pound transfer fee.

He finished as the club’s top scorer in all three seasons before a fallout with then-manager Antonio Conte led to a swift exit and a return to Spanish side Atletico Madrid.

In his two spells at Atletico, he scored 83 times, winning two LaLiga titles and the Europa League.

(Reporting by Fernando Kallas in Madrid; Editing by Sandra Maler)