LONDON. — Chelsea will bid to put the Diego Costa crisis behind them when the English Premier League soccer leaders host Hull tomorrow, while title chasing Tottenham aim to maintain their hot streak at troubled Manchester City today. Blues striker Costa reportedly clashed with Chelsea boss Antonio Conte last week over the club’s treatment of his back injury.

But Costa will return for tomorrow’s home game with Hull City after missing last weekend’s 3-0 victory at Leicester City, Conte revealed yesterday.

A back problem was the official reason for Costa’s absence at Leicester, but there were reports it stemmed from an angry row with fitness coach Julio Tous.

“He’s available for the game against Hull City,” Conte told a press conference at Chelsea’s Cobham base southwest of London.

“He restarted having training sessions on Tuesday with the rest of the team.”

Costa, Chelsea’s top scorer with 14 league goals, was also reported to be the subject of a mega-money approach from Chinese club Tianjin Quanjian.

But Conte said: “I think the player wants to stay at Chelsea. He’s very happy to play with us. This idea (to move) is far from his mind.”

Conte would not be drawn when he was asked whether Chelsea should tie Costa down to a new contract in order to head off speculation about his future.

“I think now it’s better to be focused, to be concentrated on the present, not on the future,” said the Italian, whose side are seven points clear of Tottenham Hotspur at the top of the table.

“Diego is a good player. He’s a good person. Now he’s only focused on Chelsea and to play with us and to continue to help us.

“He missed only one game, the last game. Now he’s ready to come back with us.

“I’m sure about his commitment, his behaviour, his will to fight with this team, to try together to fight to the end to try to win the title.”

Costa refused to directly address the reports about Costa’s alleged training-ground argument with Tous and would not say if he had held a meeting with the Brazil-born Spain striker this week.

Costa, who stands to make his 100th Chelsea appearance against Hull, trained on his own on Sunday and Monday, while his team-mates had time off, before returning to first-team training on Tuesday.

Conte said he had trained separately purely to help him build up fitness, rather than as a punitive measure.

“After the game against Leicester I told you the truth and I repeat: I heard a lot of speculation about Diego,” said the Chelsea manager.

“But now the most important thing is he trained with us this week and the most important thing is he hasn’t pain in his back.

“He’s available to come back in our squad against Hull City.”

Conte also confirmed Chelsea are studying an offer from Bournemouth for their second-choice goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.

“Asmir is an important player for me, on and off the pitch. He knows this,” Conte said.

“There is this offer. The club and I are evaluating this offer.”

Meanwhile, Hull haven’t beaten Chelsea since 1988, but Tigers goalkeeper Eldin Jakupovic says the third bottom team are a more dangerous unit under new boss Marco Silva.

“He gives us confidence. We have to play our football. That’s sometimes difficult in the Premier League but he’s doing a good job and the players have been doing a good job,” Jakupovic said.

In the unlikely event of a Chelsea slip, second placed Tottenham could close the seven-point gap on their London rivals when they travel to Eastlands.

City’s 4-0 thrashing at Everton last Sunday was the heaviest league loss of Pep Guardiola’s glittering managerial career and left them languishing 10 points behind Chelsea after a second defeat in their last three league games.

That prompted Guardiola to write off City’s title hopes and led critics to question whether the former Bayern Munich and Barcelona chief can succeed in England.

Tottenham pose another threat to Guardiola’s equilibrium after reeling off a six-game winning run.

But Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino, who handed Guardiola his first defeat as City boss in October, is certain his rival will eventually make his mark.

“Guardiola is one of the best managers. It is difficult to come to a new club and bring a new philosophy but he is doing very well. I am sure he will be a success,” Pochettino said.

With his squad short on energy and inspiration in recent weeks, Guardiola could freshen up his attack by giving a debut to teenage Brazil forward Gabriel Jesus, who officially completed his move from Palmeiras this week.

“I’ve watched the Premier League and I noticed it’s very hard, intense style of play,” Jesus said.

“I hope to adapt as quickly as possible in the first contact I have with the game.”

Liverpool striker Divock Origi has challenged his team-mates to keep the pressure on Chelsea when they host relegation-threatened Swansea.

Jurgen Klopp’s side are seven points behind Chelsea in third place after losing ground in the title race following a frustrating 1-1 draw at bitter rivals Manchester United last weekend.

But Origi is convinced Liverpool can still win a first title since 1990.

“I think it’s very tight above us at the moment, but you just have to look at it game by game,” Origi said.

“There are still a lot of big games, important games, so we have to stay together and finish well.”

Manchester United’s visit to Stoke offers the chance to exorcise some bad memories as Jose Mourinho’s side target a push towards the top four.

United’s lowest point of last season came in this fixture when, amid fevered speculation about Louis van Gaal’s future as manager, they performed woefully and slipped to a 2-0 Boxing Day defeat.

United have made slow progress since Mourinho replaced van Gaal in the close-season, but a 12-match unbeaten run in the league has moved them within four points of the Champions League places.

“Stoke have got some very good players and we know it’s probably not the same going there now as it was seven or eight years ago,” United midfielder Michael Carrick said.

Coach Mourinho admits Manchester United have “little problems” this week ahead of their trip to Stoke.

Manchester United face Stoke at the bet365 Stadium today at 5pm.

Fixtures (all 5pm unless stated)

Today: Bournemouth v Watford, Crystal Palace v Everton, Liverpool v Swansea (2:30pm), Manchester City v Tottenham (7:30pm), Middlesbrough v West Ham, Stoke v Manchester United, West Brom v Sunderland.

Tomorrow: Arsenal v Burnley (4:15pm), Chelsea v Hull (6:30pm), Southampton v Leicester (2pm). — AFP

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