LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) – Wolves signed former Chelsea and Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa on Monday on a season-long deal.

The 33-year-old has been without a club since leaving Brazilian side Atletico Mineiro in January.

Wolves were in need of attacking options after new signing Sasa Kalajdzic suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury on his debut against Southampton last weekend.

Wolves chairman Jeff Shi said: “We are absolutely delighted to welcome Diego Costa to Wolves, and back to the Premier League.

“A serial winner with a wealth of experience at the highest level, Diego will bring something unique to our dressing room and on the pitch, and we look forward to his impact at Molineux.”

Wolves have scored just three goals in their opening six games of the Premier League season and sit 14th in the table with six points.

Costa scored 59 goals in 120 games for Chelsea in his previous spell in England, leading the Blues to two Premier League titles.

But his career has also been dogged by a series of on-field outbursts and he has struggled to reach the heights of his time at Chelsea and first spell at Atletico since leaving London in 2017.

After two-and-a-half years back in Madrid, Costa returned to Brazil with Atletico Mineiro in August 2021 but struggled to make an impact before his contract was terminated in January.