Chelsea news: Diego Costa plays down heated first-half argument with Pedro during Tottenham defeat

The pair were involved in a heated exchange in the first half at White Hart Lane but the Spaniard has insisted there was nothing to it

Costa and Pedro argue during the first-half of their game against Tottenham on Wednesday night (Getty)

Diego Costa has played down his heated argument with team mate Pedro during Chelsea's 2-0 defeat by Tottenham on Wednesday evening.

Dele Alli's brace brought the Blues' winning run to an end and denied the side a historic 14th successive victory.

Antonio Conte's side remain five points clear at the top of the table but the scale of the occasion appeared to get to the players, with Pedro and Costa turning on one another early on in the game.

The pair were involved in a heated exchange in the first half at White Hart Lane after the striker's poor pass cut short a promising Chelsea counter-attack.

Speaking in the wake of the game, Costa insisted there was nothing to the argument and suggested disagreements are part-and-parcel of the game.

"Nothing happened. We have a great understanding with each other," Costa told the IBTimes afterwards.

"When you have a trusted relationship and intimacy with a team-mate it is normal for these things to happen.

"It was just a moment during the game, and that’s it. It was nothing.

"I told him: ‘You have to get in there, why didn’t you go?’ He said ‘I went’ and I said he didn’t. That’s it. Pedro is my brother and we love each other."

Midfielder N'Golo Kante added that Wednesday night's result was a disappointment for the side but challenged his players to hit back with 'strength' in their next game.

“I’m disappointed that the winning run has come to an end, but we’ve played game after game and now we’ve dropped three points and we’re disappointed because of that," he said.

"But we hope to be focused for the next game in the cup and to be back in the league as well.

“It’s important for the confidence and to keep our advantage in the league. We must fight to stay at the top.

“We must stay in front for as long as possible and we must stay there.

“We have to show character now, focus on the next game. We lost, we have to accept that and to come back stronger, with strong character and with a desire to win."