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Costa plays for Spain when fit, insists Del Bosque

Diego Costa scored his first international goal for Spain in their Euro 2016 qualifier against Luxembourg © Getty Images

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Spain coach Vicente del Bosque insists Diego Costa will play when fit, regardless of Jose Mourinho's concerns about the £32million striker's hamstring.

The Chelsea striker has been at the centre of a club-versus-country row in recent weeks, with Mourinho keen to protect his star signing after he arrived this summer with a hamstring injury.

However, Del Bosque insisted that the 26-year-old, who scored his first international goal in a 4-0 win over Luxembourg last Sunday, would be available for Spain unless he has an obvious injury.

"If he's well, he will have to play with the national team," Del Bosque told AS. "His muscle injury is very difficult to prove. We were almost in the realm of the mystical.

"It's not that complicated. If he's okay he plays, as he did in Paris. If he's not right he goes back to his club, as against Macedonia."

Mourinho claims Costa, the Premier League's top scorer this season with nine goals, is unable to train properly because of his hamstring problem.

"He cannot be on top of his game," Mourinho said. "He's doing almost nothing in training. He's just resting and recovering from the tight muscle he has."

When asked if Costa was fit for Chelsea's trip to Crystal Palace on Saturday, the manager said: "He is a big doubt."

The blame cannot be placed at Costa's feet, Mourinho insists, paying tribute to his striker's work rate and attitude.

"The Spanish team played in Luxembourg on Sunday. I gave them Diego, [Cesc] Fabregas and [Cesar] Azpilicueta, so I gave these players Monday and Tuesday off. They need to report to train on Wednesday 3pm. Diego was here Monday at 9am. So you can imagine how strong he was to be here Monday at 9am.

"I didn't speak to the Spanish federation. I don't speak with national team managers unless they want to speak with me. It is never my initiative to contact national teams and national team coaches. They have the power, we don't have the power."

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