José Mourinho defends Chelsea medical staff after Diego Costa suffers further hamstring blow

Chelsea manager José Mourinho has launched a firm defence of the club's medical department, after Diego Costa limped off just 12 minutes after being introduced as a substitute in the 2-1 victory over Stoke.

Costa withdrew from the Spain squad for recent matches against Ukraine and the Netherlands after it was revealed he had suffered a grade one hamstring tear against Hull on 22 March.

Given his extensive history of hamstring trouble, it was expected that the former Atletico Madrid striker could be set for an extended spell on the sidelines. However, he was deemed fit enough for a place on the bench for the visit of Mark Hughes' side.

While Chelsea largely dominated the first half at Stamford Bridge, they went into the break level with Stoke following Charlie Adam's sensational 59-yard equaliser and Mourinho responded by bringing on Costa to partner Loïc Rémy in order to give his team more attacking emphasis.

His return to action proved to be shortlived, though, with Didier Drogba summoned to replace him in the 57th minute.

That withdrawal led many to question if it had been a wise decision to rush Costa back so soon, but Mourinho, who confirmed that his leading forward will miss at least the next two weeks following his latest setback, insists he had no problem with the advice from his medical team.

"If my medical department decides to take four weeks to recover Diego, this wouldn't have happened – but we have to take risks," he told Sky Sports after the full-time whistle.

"I risk sometimes as a manager, with a half-time score I don't like, in the second half. You have to. The medical department risks a little bit. It's true that all the scans two days ago were clean and he trained 100%, twice, where he did much more than he did today.

"My medical department is fantastic so there is no problem with them and next week we will wait for Diego again. For sure he will be out for a couple of weeks, minimum."

If Costa is indeed ruled out for a minimum of a fortnight, then he stands to miss the trip to Queens Park Rangers and the home clash with Manchester United later this month. He may even be ruled out for the visit of Arsenal on 26 April.

Thankfully for Chelsea and Mourinho, Rémy has proved himself capable of deputising in Costa's absence with winning goals against both Hull and Stoke, while Eden Hazard is also in very good form.

Chelsea are seven points clear at the top of the Premier League following their latest win and still boast a game-in-hand over their nearest title rivals. Manchester City are in action against Crystal Palace on Monday evening and will look to wrestle second place back from in-form Arsenal following the latter's emphatic victory over Liverpool.