Diego Costa took centre stage with a man-of-the-match performance in Chelsea's 2-2 draw with Swansea on Super Sunday. The controversial striker is a pantomime villain who provokes opponents like few others, but does it matter when he plays like this?
In the build-up to Chelsea's trip to the Liberty Stadium, Antonio Conte dished out some advice to Diego Costa. The striker had started the season strongly under the new head coach, but for each of his goals there had been a yellow card, and Conte was well aware that he was treading a fine line.
"I want him to play with the right passion and the right aggression," said the Italian. "He must transfer his emotions to the pitch in the right way. Always." Conte is not the first manager who has struggled to tame Costa - just ask Jose Mourinho - but if he continues to perform at his current level then he might be tempted to let him get on with it.
After decisive goals against West Ham and Watford in the first two games of the season, the Spain international added two more against Swansea. He opened the scoring with a clinical finish on his weaker foot in the first half, and he rescued a point for Chelsea with a brilliant overhead kick after the hosts had rather fortuitously turned a one-sided game on its head.
There was, predictably, another yellow card and an ongoing feud with his marker, Jordi Amat, which threatened to boil over, but Costa retains an unrivalled knack for staying on the pitch while pushing the rules to their limits. Indeed, it was telling that he only conceded one foul but won seven at the Liberty Stadium. This is Diego Costa, the arch-provocateur who has only been sent off twice in his entire career.
Costa's blend of snarling aggression and dangerous ill-discipline was apparent last season, but there are other differences in his performances that could hardly be clearer. Costa was indifferent and out-of-form as Chelsea lurched through the first half of the last campaign, and by the time he reached four Premier League goals, four months had passed and their title defence was in tatters.
This year it has taken him four weeks, and Chelsea are only two points off the top of the table. A player who admitted he wanted to return Atletico Madrid in the summer has been transformed by Conte's arrival, and perhaps the most noticeable difference is his work-rate. Eden Hazard was the only Chelsea player to make more sprints against Swansea, and Costa has shown similar industry in each of their previous games.
Costa made it a horrible afternoon for Swansea's defenders, challenging, jabbing, kicking, and competing more duels (22) than any other player on the pitch. If there was a moment to sum him up, it was early in the second half when he launched a counter-attack on his own and, despite being surrounded by white shirts, succeeded in not only keeping hold of the ball but winning a free kick deep in Swansea territory.
Then, of course, there were the goals. The first was struck with the unerring assurance of a player bursting with confidence, and the second was a brilliant piece of improvisation. Costa missed an easier chance in the first half and almost won it in the closing stages, but he still ended the day at the top of the Premier League scoring charts, and his goals have already won Chelsea seven points.
Chelsea legend Gianfranco Zola was in the Sky Sports studio to lead the praise of their controversial striker. "I was impressed with his performance, not only his goals but the movement he made," he said. "He held the ball very well every time. Sometimes he was running the entire Swansea defence on his own.
"Some players they need to be angry on the pitch. They need to have a little bit of nastiness. As long as it's under control, like he was today, I think it's fine for them. He has to be like that.
"It's also so important for the team-mates to have a player like that. In our days Mark Hughes was the same, he was bullying the defenders and he was a great example for the others. I think Costa is a very influential player for Chelsea now."
Some might dispute Zola's assertion that Costa was "under control" against Swansea, but no one could argue with his influence, and his furious reaction to the final whistle was indicative of his desire. Conte's advice may have fallen on deaf ears, but perhaps that's not a bad thing. Costa is back. And he knows exactly what he's doing.