Chelsea striker Diego Costa has revealed that his famously combative approach was honed during his childhood in Brazil.
The £32m striker is top of the Premier League's scoring charts with 17 goals alongside Manchester City's Sergio Augero, and has already been involved in several clashes with opposition players during his short time in England.
"I remember a lot of games in which my friends and I ended up crying," Costa wrote in his biography, which is being serialised by the Sunday People. "I fought with everyone. I insulted everyone. I had no respect for the opposition. I thought I had to kill them.
"Boys who grew up playing in academies are taught to control themselves and respect others, but no one taught me otherwise. I didn't have a school to teach me this.
"I was used to seeing players elbow each other in the face and thought it was the norm. If you're a kid and step on someone they blame you."
Costa has been booked eight times this season, and served a three-match suspension earlier this campaign for stamping on Liverpool's Emre Can.
Paul Gorst
