Chelsea will open talks with both Thibaut Courtois and Diego Costa in the new year over new contracts, according to the London Evening Standard.
With both player’s deals set to expire in the summer of 2019, Chelsea are eager to tie them both down to improved deals before they enter the final 24 months of their current contracts.
Diego Costa is believed to have tried to force his way back to Atletico Madrid in each of the last two summers after joining Chelsea for £32m in 2014 but the Blues have managed to keep him at Stamford Bridge.
With Atletico serving out a transfer embargo, Chelsea sees this as the ideal opportunity to sign the Spaniard to a new contract which will see him receive a wage hike from his already enormous £150,000-a-week wage packet to around £200,000-a-week.
Top scorer in the Premier League this season with 10 goals, the 28-year-old has rediscovered his best form under Antonio Conte and is beginning to carry Chelsea, along with Eden Hazard, towards the title.
As for Courtois, he also is believed to have tried to engineer a move back to La Liga in recent times to no avail.
After arriving from Belgian side Genk, Chelsea loaned Courtois to Atletico Madrid for three straight seasons where he played alongside Costa and became a major fan favourite which saw him grow an affinity to the country.
The 24-year-old is wanted by both Atletico and their city rivals Real Madrid but neither side can move for the ‘keeper in the immediate future due to their respective transfer embargoes.
After putting a £73m valuation on the stopper, Chelsea believe they have fended off interest for the Belgian No.1 for now and want to hand him a new contract following his fine start to the season which has seen him not concede a goal in over 10 hours of Premier League football.
To put pen to paper on a new contract, Courtois wants to see is £100,000-a-week wages receive a major increase which Chelsea are happy to comply with.
Talks over new contracts will commence after the new year.
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