Chelsea manager Antonio Conte 'cannot deal' with Diego Costa anymore, says Jamie Redknapp

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has had enough of the petulant Diego Costa but may not be able to replace the fiery Spaniard with a player of the same calibre, according to Jamie Redknapp.

Costa has led Chelsea to two Premier League titles during his three years at Stamford Bridge, but his time in the capital is all but over after Conte informed him that he was not part of his future plans via text.

The Spain international longs for a return to Atletico Madrid, who are currently finding it hard to do business due to their player registration ban, while a move to the Chinese Super League looks unlikely.

Costa's next club may be a mystery but he is certain to leave Chelsea this summer, and Redknapp thinks the 28-year-old's disruptive nature would harm the atmosphere in the Blues' dressing room if he did remain a part of the squad.

"This is as much to do with his attitude as his ability," Redknapp told Sky Sports. "Antonio Conte's looked at him and thought he can't deal with him anymore. He's become too much of a handful.

"It's nothing to do with his ability or not being a good player, it's to do with disrupting the squad. Maybe his attitude just isn't right because there have obviously been a few clashes between the manager and the player.

Despite the apparent need to be rid of Costa, Chelsea are having a hard time finding an adequate replacement.

Chelsea's attempts to replace Costa, who scored 20 in the Premier League last season, were dashed severely by Manchester United, who moved quickly to sign long-time Blues target Romelu Lukaku from Everton for an initial £75m.

Former Manchester United target Alvaro Morata and Andrea Belotti have both been mentoned, but the pair would have an almighty task in trying to replicate the feats of Costa, who will be sorely missed by the Chelsea faithful despite his antics.

"I do worry about Chelsea now though because Costa was so good," Redknapp added. "These players are not easy to find.

"You could sign Alvaro Morata who is extremely talented but he doesn't get regular games at Real. When you are talking £50m to £60m, it is really difficult to find the players you want, who can make the difference Diego Costa did, especially with the style Chelsea play.

"They played with one up and Eden Hazard in behind him. It worked so well last season so to not see him in a Chelsea shirt will be hard for the players and certainly the fans because he's been extremely successful for them."