 |
| Drogba On The Field |
Not many noticed but following his equaliser against Bayern in the final of the Champions League on Saturday, Drogba darted over to the Chelsea supporters and saluted them. With tears streaming down his face and his face convulsed with so many emotions, he threw open his arms to the Chelsea loyal, like a famous and much-loved showman taking a bow, for the very last time.
 |
| Drogba With UEFA Cup Trophy |
His contribution to Chelsea has been extraordinary and definitely will not be forgotten in many years to come. He is the club’s 4th all time top scorer with 157 goals from 341 appearances and a club record of 34 European goals too.
Signed in 2004 by the Special One, Drogba made his debut against Manchester United on the 15th of August, which incidentally was the first ever match that I watched. Despite playing second fiddle to Eidur Gudjohnsen, Drogba excelled when given the chance, playing with great exuberance. Making major contributions on the goals front, he helped Chelsea clinch back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006 and picked up several accolades in that period, including the Golden Boot in the Premier League.
2007 and 2008 saw a more mature Drogba, who had assumed the responsibility of being Chelsea’s main marksman and saw the evolution of him from a forward into a Chelsea cult hero. Scoring vital goals in the finals of the FA Cup finals and Carling Cup finals, Didi was making a name for himself as a big-match performer – a title he lived up to until the very end. Unfortunately, a blemish on his near-perfect record was the Champions League final in which he got himself sent off for a bust-up with Nemanja Vidic.
He was the designated 5th penalty taker but as he was sent off, John Terry had to deputise and we all need not be reminded of how that turned out. Yet again, the next year in the semi-finals against Barcelona, Drogba could not control his flaring temperature and lashed out at the referee Ovrebo for his controversial decisions, earning himself the opportunity to watch another 3 matches from the sidelines.
2009-10 saw a highly mercurial Didier Drogba. Scoring for fun and terrorising defences like it was child’s play; Drogba scored a very highly impressive 29 goals in the Premier League that season. It included a mind-blowing hat trick on the final day in the 8-0 demolition of Wigan to effectively hand Chelsea the Premier League title and himself take the accolades of Chelsea Player of The Season and the Golden Boot again. He scored the only goal in the 1-0 FA Cup final win over Portsmouth from a magnificent free kick.
2010-11 was Chelsea’s first trophy-less season in quite a few years and yet Drogba managed to finish on a high after getting back among the goals as Chelsea scrambled up from a mid-season slump to finish 2nd.
2011-12 did not see the best of starts for Drogba. Often overlooked by Andre Villas Boas, Drogba’s confidence and golden touch was re -discovered and rejuvenated by the interim replacement Robbie Di Matteo. And boy, what a turn of fortunes it was!
The sudden up in the ante was coherent to Drogba’s own improving-by-the-day performances. The Champions League has been the Ivorian’s favourite hunting ground this season and he once again reaffirmed his status as a big-game player by scoring vital goals against Valencia and Napoli.
Against Barcelona, he was forced to play up all alone by himself and did not get many chances to bomb forward due to the lack of support. Yet, from the one chance he got, he slotted the ball past a napping Victor Valdes to hand Chelsea their sweet revenge for 2009. And needless to say, his performances against Liverpool and Bayern Munich will go down as one of the best ever. Shrugging off Martin Skrtel to score a beautiful shot past a helpless Pepe Reina, he handed Chelsea their 7th FA Cup and 3rd in 4 years.
His show in the Champions League will definitely be remembered by the Chelsea fans and football fans alike. He equalised to bring Chelsea back into the game and then as if to bury the ghosts of Moscow 2008, he took the decisive 5th penalty in the shootout to sign off in typical Drogba-esque style.
Over the years, Chelsea have signed big-name strikers like Shevchenko, Anelka, Kezman and Torres and yet, none of them have managed to dethrone the big Ivorian from his rightful throne as the Modern King of Stamford Bridge.
The big man from Cote d’Ivoire has been quoted as saying
‘I wish the club all the best and continued success for the future – you will always be in my heart.’
I think I represent every Chelsea fan in saying, and you, in our hearts. All your goals, assists, celebrations, entertainment, humanity, charm. The memories will be etched in our hearts as permanently as Chelsea is engraved onto the Champions League trophy.
Thank you, oh king! Thank you Didier Drogba. Thank you for everything.
