A female broadcaster has accused ex-Chelsea star Diego Costa of a disgusting act after a match.
Costa made his name in Spain with Atletico Madrid before joining Chelsea for £32 million in the summer of 2014.
He scored 52 goals in the Premier League, helping Chelsea win two league titles during his spell at Stamford Bridge.
Costa returned to Atletico after his Chelsea stint and played in an infamous Champions League tie against Liverpool during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Atletico, backed by 3,000 travelling fans at Anfield, beat Liverpool 1-0 in a clash that was hugely scrutinised amid Covid-19 spreading like wildfire across the UK and Europe.
It turned out to be the last major football match in England before the sport was halted by the pandemic crisis.
Helene Hendriks worked Liverpool vs. Atletico for Dutch TV despite the Netherlands already being in lockdown.
She blamed the game for 41 deaths before revealing Costa's conduct in the media mixed zone.
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"Ultimately, of all the people in that stadium, 41 died from Covid-19," she said on the HNM podcast.
After the game, Hendriks spoke to players from both teams, including Virgil van Dijk and the aforementioned Costa.
She has claimed that the Brazilian-born forward came up to her and coughed in her face as he walked past her on the way out of Anfield that night.
Hendriks added: "First I had Virgil van Dijk, then Diego Costa. Do you know what Diego Costa did?
"He walked up and deliberately coughed in everyone’s face.
"I don’t get angry easily, but I wanted to run after him and say, 'what are you doing to me?'
"He actually coughed right in my face.
"But for the connection to the Netherlands, I was attached to a wire and I was following Diego Costa, so the whole camera fell over.
"I didn’t know what was happening to me, I thought it was absolutely outrageous."
Hendriks claimed she contracted Covid-19 just days after covering Liverpool vs. Atletico for Dutch TV.
She made a full recovery and was able to continue her career in the media.
Topics: Champions League, Atletico Madrid, Liverpool, Diego Costa, Football
Nasir Jabbar