Martin Keown: 'Diego Costa a master of dark arts'

Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown has stated that he would have loved to have played against Chelsea striker Diego Costa.

The Spain striker has attracted criticism for provoking Gunners centre-back Gabriel in an incident which saw the Brazilian defender sent off in Saturday's 2-0 defeat to the Blues at Stamford Bridge.

Keown has insisted that he would not have fallen for Costa's antics had he come up against him.

"Once in a while I wish I could beam a current player back to my era so I could play against them," Keown wrote in the Daily Mail.

"Diego Costa is top of that list. I was a little bit crazy and I'm pretty sure he is too, so I'd love to go toe-to-toe with him and show him that I wouldn't be bullied by him.

"Costa has a black belt in the dark arts. He plays his opponents as much as he plays the match, constantly trying to draw a reaction from and bully defenders."

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has demanded that referee Mike Dean reviews Costa's behaviour.