Diego Costa a doubt for start of Atletico's pre-season with ligament sprain

Atletico Madrid have confirmed Diego Costa suffered a sprain to the lateral ligament of his left ankle in Tuesday's friendly defeat to Beitar Jerusalem.

Diego Simeone's side were beaten 2-1 in their season-concluding exhibition game, but their biggest frustration was an injury suffered by Costa in the 28th minute.

The striker turned his ankle and, although the club were able to rule out damage to the bone, further tests upon their return to Madrid discovered a ligament had been impacted.

Having suffered a grade two sprain, Costa may take over two months to recover from the problem, meaning he could miss the start of Atletico's pre-season.

The injury brings a difficult season to a disheartening end for Costa, who has struggled for form and missed the final seven matches of the LaLiga campaign through suspension after earning an eight-game ban having insulted a referee.

| PARTE MÉDICO La resonancia magnética realizada a @diegocosta indica que nuestro delantero sufre esguince grado II en el ligamento lateral externo de su tobillo izquierdo. A partir de hoy se someterá a tratamiento de fisioterapia. https://t.co/T1lYH6dvnp

— Atlético de Madrid (@Atleti) May 22, 2019