Didier Drogba, who was born as Didier Yves Drogba Tébily, is an Ivorian footballer currently playing for the Premier League side Chelsea FC. Didier Drogba is considered to be one of the world’s best strikers, and specialises in playing as the lone striker. Drogba is at his best when he is playing as a lone striker and often produces goals from this exceptional talent. He is regarded as one of the best players to come out of Africa, but strangely, it was not until his move to Chelsea that he got the right attention that his play deserved.
Drogba started his career with the French side Le Mans in 1998 and played there for two years. He represented the side in 64 matches and scored 12 goals in the process. His performances caught the eye of another French club Guingamp in 2002. However, he stayed there for only one year. It was not because of his poor performances, but due to this exceptional performances that soon brought to the attention of other clubs from the French league.
However, he created quite a stir by moving to Marseille, which is one of the big clubs in France. Yet again, he was on the move after only one year. This time, it was to English side Chelsea FC, who had just been taken over by Roman Abramovich. Under new manager José Mourinho, they were recruiting a number of players from across the world and Didier Drogba just seemed like one in a thousand. Chelsea paid Marseille a fee of £24 million for the big Ivorian, who had been performing in the top level of football in France for about a year or so. However, Drogba made his name stick in the Chelsea fans hearts by impressing them straightaway with his performances.
Initially, Drogba had to content with competition that included the likes of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Eidur Gudjohnsen. These were players with much better Premier league experience on their side, but with his and exceptional talent, he soon became the automatic starter for the Chelsea side. Didier Drogba was a major influence in Chelsea winning their first ever Premier League title in 2004. He was also instrumental in Chelsea retaining the title next season.
Within the space of a few years, Didier Drogba had gone from playing for the bottom club in French football to one of the top sides in Europe.
So far, he has made over 200 appearances for the English club, while scoring 95 goals in the process. This impressive strike rate alone says a lot about Didier Drogba’s career in England. Drogba has had an exceptional career internationally as well. He has represented the Côte d’Ivoire national team in 74 appearances and scored 49 goals, which is a remarkable strike rate in the international scenario. So far, Didier Drogba has lifted three Premier League titles, two FA League Cups, three FA cups and one Community Shield. He has also played in the final of the Champions League in 2008.