Chelsea coach Antonio Conte is adamant that news of a bid for Diego Costa from Chinese Super League club Tianjin Quanjian is "only speculation" after reports of a row between the two emerged on Friday.
Costa was left out of Chelsea's squad for the 3-0 win at Leicester City on Saturday, with the Spain international suffering from a back injury, according to the club.
"I don't know anything about this," the Italian told reporters. "The club didn't inform me about this. For this reason it can be only speculation."
"Today I can't be concerned about this [whether or not Costa will play for them again]," he added.
"Because today my players showed me a great performance, great spirit. It's very important.
"When you are able to win this type of game against Leicester, 3-0, it means that I can't be concerned about anything.
"I must be pleased for my players, to work with these players. I want to continue to work with my players."
Conte was also unsure about the severity of Costa's injury, though he hinted at an update in the coming week.
He said: "I don't know. It's always very difficult [to know the severity]. I don't have his pain.
"It's important to understand when he recovers from his pain. We'll see next week about this."
