Personal information
Full name Didier Yves Drogba Tébily
Date of birth 11 March 1978 (age 32)
Place of birth Abidjan, Ivory Coast
Nationality Ivorian ( Ivory Coast )
Weight 14st 5lbs (91.0kg)
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Chelsea
Number 11
Youth career
1996–1997 Levallois
1997–1998 Le Mans
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
1998–2002 Le Mans 64 (12)
2002–2003 Guingamp 45 (20)
2003–2004 Marseille 35 (19)
2004– Chelsea 166 (84)
Total 310 (135)
National team‡
2002– Ivory Coast 68 (44)
Didier Drogba
Didier Yves Drogba Tébily (French pronunciation: [didje dʁɔɡba]; born 11 March 1978) is
an Ivorian professional footballer who plays in the centre forward position. He currently plays
for Chelsea in the Premier League and is the captain and all-time top scorer of the Ivory Coast national
football team. He has scored more goals for Chelsea than any other foreign player and is currently
Chelsea's 7th highest goal scorer of all time.
Early life
Didier Drogba was born in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and at the age of five was sent to France by his parents
to live with his uncle, Michel Goba, a professional footballer. However, Drogba soon became homesick
and returned to Abidjan after three years. His mother nicknamed him "Tito", after president Josip Broz
Tito of Yugoslavia, whom she admired greatly. He played football every day in a car park in the city but
his return to Côte d'Ivoire was short lived. Both of his parents lost their jobs and he again returned to live
with his uncle. In 1991, his parents also travelled to France, first to Vannes and then settling in 1993
at Antony in the Paris suburbs, at which point the 15-year-old Drogba returned to live with them and his
siblings.It was here that he began playing team football more frequently, joining a local youth side. Drogba
began his career as a junior player at the semi-professional club Levallois, gaining a reputation as a
prolific scorer in the youth team and impressing the coach with his professional attitude. His performances
earned him a place in the senior squad but, despite scoring in his debut, the 18-year-old Ivorian failed to
make an impression on Jacques Loncar, the first team coach.
Becoming A Professional
After playing in youth teams, Drogba made his professional debut aged 18 for Ligue 2 clubLe Mans.
A late bloomer, he signed his first professional contract aged 21 but it was not until the 2002–03 season
that he realised his potential, scoring 17 goals in 34 appearances in Ligue 1 for Guingamp. During the
same season he made his first international appearance for Ivory Coast in September and scored his first
international goal the following February. He moved to Olympique de Marseille in 2003 for £3.3 million
and his prolific ways continued, finishing as the third highest scorer in the league with 19 goals and
making it to the 2004 UEFA Cup Final.
Drogba moved to Chelsea the following season for a record breaking fee of £24 million, making him the
most expensive Ivory Coast player in history. In addition, Drogba scored decisive goals in the 2005 FA
Community Shield and League Cup Final and helped the club win their first ever Premier League title.
Drogba came to prominence as one of the world's foremost strikers in 2006 as he won the league title
with Chelsea again and captained the national team for the first time. In the 2006 World Cup he scored
Ivory Coast's first ever goal of the competition and he was chosen as the 2006 African Footballer of the
Year. The next season he finished as top scorer in the 2006–07 Premier League with 20 goals and also
scored the winning goals in the 2007 League Cup and FA Cup finals. He won the FA Cup for the second
time in 2009, scoring the equalizer in the final. In the 2009–10 season Drogba proved instrumental in
Chelsea’s winning of the first double in the club history. He won his second Golden Boot with 29 goals
and scored the only goal in Chelsea’s victory over Portsmouth in the 2010 FA Cup final. This goal makes
him the only player to score in 6 English cup finals.
Drogba is credited by many with playing a vital role in bringing peace to his country. After Ivory
Coast qualified for the 2006 World Cup, Drogba made a desperate plea to the combatants, asking them
to lay down their arms, a plea which was answered with a cease fire after 5 years of civil war. Drogba
later helped move an African Cup of Nations qualifier to the rebel stronghold of Bouake a move which
has been credited with affirming the peace process. His involvement in the peace process lead to Drogba
being named as one of the world's 100 most influential people by Time magazine.
Club career
Le Mans (1997–2002)
When Drogba finished school he switched cities to study accountancy at college and he had to change
club, becoming an apprentice at Ligue 2 club Le Mans. However, his first two years there were marred
by injuries and he was physically struggling to cope with the training and match schedule. Former Le
Mans coach Marc Westerloppe later remarked that "it took Didier four years to be capable of training
every day and playing every week". Furthermore, Drogba's complicated family life meant that he had
never attended a football academy and only began daily football training as a fully grown adult. [9]
By age 21, Drogba realized that he had to establish himself as a player soon or else he would have little
chance of becoming a professional footballer. He made his first team debut for Le Mans soon thereafter
and signed his first professional contract in 1999. Drogba's personal life was also becoming more serious
as he and his Malian wife Alla had their first child, Isaac. He grew into his new responsibilities, later
stating: "Isaac's birth was a turning point in my life, it straightened me out". His first season, in which he
scored seven goals in thirty games, boded well for the future, but the following season did not live up to
expectations. Drogba lost his place to Daniel Cousin due to injury, then upon his return he failed to score
throughout the remainder of the season. However, he returned to form the following season, making 21
appearances and scoring five times.
Guingamp (2002–2003)
Halfway through the 2001–02 season Ligue 1 club Guingamp consolidated months of interest with a
transfer offer and Drogba left Le Mans for a fee of £80,000. The second half of the 2001–02 season saw
Drogba make eleven appearances and score three goals for Guingamp. While his contributions helped
the club avoid relegation, the coaching staff remained unconvinced of their new young striker. However,
the next season he rewarded his coaches' patience, scoring 17 goals in 34 appearances and helping
Guingamp finish seventh, a record league finish. He credited his teammates for his impressive season,
highlighting the contributions of winger Florent Malouda, a long time friend of Drogba, as a key factor in
his goalscoring prolificity that season. His strong goal scoring record attracted interest from larger clubs
and at the end of the season he moved to Ligue 1 outfit Marseille for a fee of £3.3 million.
Marseille (2003–2004)
Olympique de Marseille manager Alain Perrin signed Drogba from Guingamp, though he was soon
replaced by José Anigo. Drogba retained his place in the team, scoring 19 goals and winning the Ligue
de Football Professionnel's Player of the Year. He also scored five goals in that season's UEFA
Champions League and six in the UEFA Cup. At the end of the season he was bought by Chelsea as
the club's then record signing for £24 million. His shirt from his only season at OM is also framed in
the basilica of Marseille, Notre-Dame de la Garde, which he presented to the church before the 2004
UEFA Cup Final.
Chelsea (2004–present)
Signing for Chelsea in July 2004 for £24 million, Drogba scored in his third game for the club with a
header against Crystal Palace. His season was interrupted when he pulled a stomach muscle
against Liverpool which kept him out of action for over two months. Chelsea won the Premiership, only
their second English top-flight championship and their first in 50 years, and the League Cup, with Drogba
scoring in extra time in a 3–2 final win against Liverpool at the Millennium Stadium, as well as reaching
the semi-finals of the Champions League. Drogba scored 16 goals in 40 games for Chelsea in his first
season: 10 in the Premiership, five in the Champions League and one in the League Cup final.
Drogba started the 2005–06 season by scoring two goals in a Community Shield win over Arsenal. His
reputation was marred amidst accusations of cheating during Chelsea's 2–0 win over Manchester City.
Replays showed that he had used his hand to control the ball before scoring the second of his two
goals.] This occurred just a week after a similar incident against Fulham where the goal was disallowed. In
a post match interview with the BBC, he acknowledged that he had handled the ball and seemingly
admitted to cheating, saying, "Sometimes I dive, sometimes I stand," before immediately retracting his
comment: "I don't dive, I play my game".
Chelsea went on to retain the league title with two games to play, becoming only the second team to win
back-to-back English titles in the Premier League era. Again Drogba finished with 16 goals for the
season, 12 in the league, two in the Community Shield, one in the Champions League and one in the FA
Cup.
2006–07
After the departure of Damien Duff to Newcastle United, Drogba switched from the number 15 shirt he
had worn for Chelsea since 2004 to the number 11 shirt vacated by Duff. The season was a personal
success for Drogba as he hit 33 goals in all competitions (more than his tally in the previous two seasons
combined), including 20 in the Premier League to win the Golden Boot. In doing so, he became the first
Chelsea player since Kerry Dixon in 1984–85 to reach 30 goals in a season. The breakdown of his 33
goals is; 20 in the Premier League, six in the Champions League, three in the FA Cup and four in
the League Cup.
Among the highlights were scoring winners from outside the penalty area
against Liverpool, Evertonand Barcelona, a 93rd minute equaliser against Barcelona at the Camp
Nou and both Chelsea's goals in their 2–1 League Cup final win over Arsenal. He also completed two
hat-tricks; one against Watford and the other against Levski Sofia in the Champions League, Chelsea's
first hat-trick in European competition since Gianluca Vialli in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1997. In his last
competitive game that season, he scored the winning goal over Manchester United in the first FA Cup
final at the new Wembley Stadium. This also meant that he joined Norman Whiteside (Manchester
United in 1983) and Mark Hughes (Manchester United in 1994) as players who have scored goals in both
English domestic finals in the same year, although Drogba was the first player to end up on the winning
team after scoring in both finals.
In January 2007, Drogba was crowned the Ivorian Player of the Year, ahead of Kader Keita, Aruna
Dindane, and Kolo Touré. In March, he was named African Footballer of the Year for the first time,
ahead of Samuel Eto'o and Michael Essien. His performances during the season saw him named in the
PFA Premier League Team of the Year and runner-up to Cristiano Ronaldo in the PFA Player of the
Year awards.
Drogba faced problems off the pitch during the close season as his transfer from Marseille to Chelsea in
July 2004 came under scrutiny. The Stevens inquiry in June 2007 expressed concerns because of the
lack of co-operation from agents Pinhas Zahavi and Barry Silkman.
2007–08
Training
The 2007–08 season began badly for Drogba as he expressed doubts about the departure of
manager José Mourinho. He was reportedly in tears when Mourinho told him he was leaving the club,
and said "Mourinho's departure destroys a certain familiarity we had at the club. Many of us used to play
first and foremost for the manager. Now we need to forget those feelings and find another source of
motivation".Following these claims, Drogba told France Football Magazine "I want to leave Chelsea.
Something is broken with Chelsea, The damage is big in the dressing room".Despite having signed a four
year contract with the club in 2006, Drogba reportedly pointed out several favoured clubs in the interview,
identifying Barcelona, Real Madrid, Milan or Internazionale as possible future destinations, he later
admitted he regretted this and was 100% committed to Chelsea. He soon regained the trust of the
board and fans , scoring in Chelsea's 2–0 victory over Middlesbrough on 20 October 2007,
against Schalke 04 in the Champions League four days later, and 2 goals against Manchester City,
giving superb performances in all.
Drogba continued scoring goals but suffered an injury at the training ground and decided to have an
operation on his knee. He was unable to play for four weeks and missed key games
against Valencia, Arsenal and Liverpool. Drogba returned from injury to play in an FA Cup third round
match against QPR and wore the captain's armband for the last 30 minutes in which he was on the pitch,
but that was his last performance for The Blues before international duty at the African Nations Cup.
Upon his return Drogba scored a goal in the 2008 League Cup Final which made him the all-time leading
scorer in League Cup Finals with four. He also became the first player to score in three League Cup finals
and the first to score in three consecutive English domestic cup finals. He scored both goals in a key 2–1
victory against Arsenal on 23 March 2008 which took Chelsea equal on points with leaders Manchester
United.
Drogba and Arsenal strikerRobin van Persie in 2008.
On 26 April 2008 Drogba faced controversy after a clash with Manchester United defender Nemanja
Vidić. The Serbian centre-back had to have stitches under his lip after losing a tooth in the clash. There
was discussion whether Drogba had the intention or not to injure his rival. The debate also called in to
question an earlier incident on 26 November 2006 where Drogba elbowed Vidić. Manchester United
manager Sir Alex Ferguson expressed concerns over elbowing in the Premiership. Despite media
speculation, Drogba's yellow card for the clash was deemed adequate punishment by the FA.
Controversy still dogged the player as before the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg clash
with Liverpool, Drogba was accused of diving by Liverpool coach Rafael Benítez. Benítez claimed to
have compiled a four-year dossier of Drogba's "diving" antics but Drogba hit back at Benítez in an
interview.
On 30 April 2008 Drogba scored two goals in the UEFA Champions League semi-final
against Liverpool, which Chelsea won 3–2 at Stamford Bridge. This was the first time Chelsea had
beaten Liverpool in the semi-finals of the Champions League, having lost their previous two meetings to
Liverpool. This also led to Chelsea reaching their first Champions League Final. Drogba became
Chelsea's top scorer in European competition, the two goals he scored putting his tally at 17, beating
Peter Osgood's record of 16. Drogba was sent off in the 117th minute of the Champions League
Final for slapping defender Vidić, becoming only the second player to be sent off in a European Cup final
– after Jens Lehmann in 2006 – and the first for violent conduct. Chelsea went on to lose 6–5 on
penalties after a 1–1 draw in extra time. Chelsea assistant boss Henk ten Cate revealed Drogba was due
to take the crunch fifth spot-kick in the shootout. Team captain John Terry took his place but missed after
slipping whilst taking the penalty.
2008–09
Drogba playing for Chelsea in 2008.
Drogba suffered a string of injuries early on in the season and struggled to regain fitness, missing games
from August to November due to knee problems. He scored his first goal of the season in mid-November
but there was little reason to celebrate: he incurred disciplinary action and a three match ban for
throwing a coin back into the stands and Chelsea suffered a League Cup defeat against Burnley. Drogba
scored his second goal of the season in a 2–1 victory against CFR Cluj in the UEFA Champions League
while his first Premier League goal of the season came in a 2–0 win against West Bromwich Albion in late
December 2008. Having missed many games through injury and suspension, Drogba had lost his first
team place and manager Scolari favoured playing Nicolas Anelka as a lone striker rather than pairing
the two. However, he resolved to regain his position in the squad and Chelsea remained keen to keep the
Ivorian.
Upon the temporary appointment of Guus Hiddink in early February following the sacking of Scolari,
Drogba enjoyed a rejuvenation of sorts, returning to his rich goal-scoring form with four goals in five
games after the new manager took over. His revival in form saw him net twice against Bolton Wanderers,
and four times in four Champions League matches, one in each leg of the last sixteen and quarter final of
the competition against Juventus and Liverpool respectively, with these goals ensuring Chelsea's
passage into the semi-finals. Just four days after his Champions League heroics, Drogba scored a late
winner in the FA Cupsemi-final match against Arsenal after Frank Lampard's superb pass found Drogba
and he carefully rounded Arsenal goalkeeper Łukasz Fabiański before slotting into an empty
net.Drogba also caused controversy after Chelsea's Champions League semi-final defeat at the hands
of FC Barcelona. Feeling that many decisions had gone against Chelsea, substituted Drogba confronted
referee Tom Henning Øvrebø after the final whistle. He received a yellow card in the process and was
recorded shouting "It's a fucking disgrace" into a live television camera. On 17 June 2009, UEFA
subsequently handed him a six game European ban with the final two games suspended.The ban then
was cut down by 1 match after an appeal by Chelsea F.C[ In the 2009 FA Cup Final he scored Chelsea's
first and equalising goal as they went on to win 2–1.This was his sixth goal in a major cup final in
England. Although Drogba had previously expressed his desire to switch clubs, he decided to remain
with the Blues under new coach Carlo Ancelotti and sign a new contract.
2009–10
Drogba began the season in fine form for Chelsea, netting a penalty during a shoot-out in the Community
Shield over Manchester United, before scoring twice in a 2–1 victory over Hull City. Drogba earned
himself an assist when he was fouled in the area to give Chelsea a penalty, which Frank Lampard duly
converted, in a 3–1 victory over Sunderland. In Chelsea's third game of the season againstWest-
London rivals Fulham, Drogba scored his third goal of the season. Drogba scored his fourth goal of the
season, against Stoke City; Chelsea ended winning the game 2–1 with a late strike from Malouda.[ He
added a fifth at home against London rivals Tottenhamon 20 September. He scored his 100th goal for
Chelsea in a 3–1 defeat against Wigan Athletic. Drogba was again important in the 2–0 win over title
rivals Liverpool on 4 October. He assisted both goals, setting up Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda. He
then scored a glancing header against Blackburn on 24 October 2009, bringing his tally to an impressive
eight goals in eleven appearances, scoring his third goal in as many games. Drogba continued his fine
form scoring a header against Bolton in a 4–0 thrashing in the Carling Cup, Drogba went on to score a
fine team goal in the same week with another 4–0 win against Bolton in the Premiership.
After missing the first three Champions League matches for Chelsea with a ban, Drogba started the fourth
game against Spanish side Atlético Madrid. He scored two goals in the last ten minutes and the match
ended 2–2. The latter being a fine solo effort in which he beat a number of the opposition players and had
his first effort saved by the goalkeeper but then slotted in the rebound. On 29 November, Drogba scored a
brace against London rivals Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, the second of which a free kick from
outside the box. It brought his tally for the season to 14 goals in 16 games. On 12 December, Drogba
continued to impress with 2 goals in 3–3 draw against Everton FC
Between 3 and 30 January Drogba was on Africa Cup of Nations duty and came back on 2 February
against Hull City where he scored a 40th minute equaliser to tie the game 1–1 On 24 March, Drogba
scored his 30th goal of the season in an away game against Portsmouth.
On 9 May, Drogba inspired Chelsea to win the Premier League by scoring a hat-trick in an 8–0 win
over Wigan Athletic. In doing so, he not only collected his third League winner's medal, but also won the
Golden Boot for the season, his second time doing so, by topping the chart with 29 league goals,
beating Wayne Rooney to the title who remained on 26 goals. Both players had the same number of
goals (26) before the start of their respective fixtures. However, during the game, Drogba appeared to be
clearly angry with team-mate and regular penalty taker Frank Lampard, after Lampard refused to let
Drogba take a penalty which would lead Chelsea to go 2–0 up and give him a chance of winning the
golden boot. Lampard scored the penalty, but Drogba did not celebrate with his team-mates. Later on in
the game though, Lampard allowed Drogba to take a penalty, which he scored to go 2 clear of Rooney.
International career
Drogba is a Ivory Coast international and helped the team qualify for its first ever World Cup, held
in Germany in 2006. His first cap came on 8 September 2002 against South Africa and he scored his first
goal with "The Elephants" on 11 February 2003 against Cameroon in a 3–0 victory.
In February 2006, Drogba captained Côte d'Ivoire to their second African Cup of Nations final, scoring the
only goal in their semi-final match with Nigeria and putting away the deciding spot-kick in their record-
tying 12–11 penalty shootout quarter-final win over Cameroon. However, they lost in the final to Egypt 4–
2 on penalties after a 0–0 draw, with Drogba's shot being stopped by Egyptian goalkeeper Essam El-
Hadary in a penalty shoot-out.
In the 2006 World Cup, Côte d'Ivoire were drawn in a "group of death" with Serbia and Montenegro,
the Netherlands and Argentina. On 11 June 2006, Drogba scored the first World Cup goal of his career
and of his country's history in the opening game against Argentina, but his team lost. Ivory Coast were
eliminated from the World Cup after their next game, a 1–2 defeat to the Netherlands, but came from 0–2
down to win against Serbia and Montenegro 3–2 in their final group game, with Drogba watching from the
sidelines following suspension.
In the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, Ivory Coast were drawn in a group with Nigeria,Mali & underdogs
Benin. Drogba scored two goals in the group stage, opening the scoring in the 4–1 win over Benin and
the first on the score sheet again in the 3–0 win over Mali. In the quarter finals, Drogba was on the score
sheet once again in the 5–0 thrashing of Guinea with the last four goals coming in the final twenty
minutes. The semi final was a rematch of the 2006 final against Egypt, but it was to be the end of the road
for Drogba and the Ivory Coast, at the hands of the 2006 champions, losing 4–1 and then had no more
luck in third place play-off, losing 4–2 to Ghana.
He scored 6 goals in 5 qualification games to helped the team qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In
the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations Drogba scored one goal in the 3–1 victory against Ghana in the group
stage. Ivory Coast reached the quarter finals but lost 2–3 to Algeria.
In March 2010, he was named as the 2009 African Footballer of the Year, his second time winning the
award in his career[
On 4 June, Drogba fractured his elbow in the friendly match with Japan. He received the injury in a high
challenge from defender Túlio. He is undergoing an operation in hopes to be ready for the World Cup.
Personal life
Drogba is married to Alla, a Malian woman whom he met in Paris, and the couple have three children
together. His eldest son, Isaac, was born in France in 1999. He has two younger brothers who are also
footballers: Joël and Freddy Drogba. Freddy, 17, is currently in the youth system of French side Le
Mans. On 24 January 2007, Drogba was appointed by the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) as a Goodwill Ambassador. The UNDP were impressed with his previous charity
work and believed that his high profile would help raise awareness on African issues. Drogba's charity
work continued when, in late 2009, he announced he would be donating the 3 million GBP signing on fee
for his endorsement of Pepsi for the construction of a hospital in his hometown of Abidjan. This work
was done through Drogba's recently created "Didier Drogba Foundation" and Chelsea announced they
too would donate the fee for the deal toward the Foundation's project. Drogba decided on building the
hospital after a recent trip to the Ivorian capital's other hospitals, saying "...I decided the Foundation's first
project should be to build and fund a hospital giving people basic healthcare and a chance just to stay
alive."[
Statistics
Ligue 2 Coupe de France Coupe de la Ligue Europe Others Total
Club Season
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
Le Mans 1998–99 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
1999–00 30 7 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 32 7
2000–01 11 0 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 1
2001–02 21 5 1 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 24 7
Total 64 12 4 2 4 1 0 0 0 0 72 15
Ligue 1 Coupe de France Coupe de la Ligue Europe Others Total
Club Season
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
Guingamp 2001–02 11 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 3
2002–03 34 17 3 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 39 21
Total 45 20 3 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 50 24
Ligue 1 Coupe de France Coupe de la Ligue Europe Others Total
Club Season
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
Marseille 2003–04 35 19 2 1 2 1 16 11 0 0 55 32
Total 35 19 2 1 2 1 16 11 0 0 55 32
Premier League FA Cup League Cup Europe Others Total
Club Season
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
Chelsea 2004–05 26 10 2 0 4 1 9 5 0 0 41 16
2005–06 29 12 3 1 1 0 7 1 1 2 41 16
2006–07 36 20 6 3 5 4 12 6 1 0 60 33
2007–08 19 8 1 0 1 1 11 6 0 0 32 15
2008–09 24 5 6 3 2 1 10 5 0 0 42 14
2009–10 32 29 4 3 2 2 5 3 1 0 44 37
Total 166 84 22 10 15 9 54 26 3 2 260 131
Overall Total 310 135 31 17 23 11 70 37 3 2 437 202
National team
National Team Year Friendlies International Total
Competition
App Goals App Goals App Goals
2002 0 0 1 0 1 0
2003 4 1 3 3 7 4
2004 3 3 4 3 7 6
2005 3 1 5 6 8 7
Ivory Coast
2006 7 4 7 4 14 8
2007 6 3 2 1 8 4
2008 2 1 6 3 8 4
2009 2 2 5 6 7 8
2010 5 2 3 1 8 3
Overall Total 32 17 36 27 68 44
CONCLUSION :Chronology of Didier Drogba
His full name is Didier Yves Drogba Tebily,born at Abidijan,Ivory Coast,
March,11 ,1978.
When he was 5,he was sent to France by his parents to live in his uncle,Michel
Goba,professional footballer.After 3 years,he returned to Abidjan, because of homesick.
Drogba's family travelled to France in1991.Then, in 1996,Drogba starts his career as a junior
player in a semi pro club,Levallios.His good perfomances earned place in senior squad.
Then he moved to Le Mans in 1997,an Ligue 2 club and he is 18 years old but only for several
years.
Drogba is married to Alla,a Malian women whom he met in Paris,and they have three
children together,Isaac , Joel and Freddy Drogba.
third highest scorer.in the league with 19 goals and making it to 2004 UEFA Cup Final
In 2003,he moved ,again, to Olympique de Marseille for £3.3 million.There,he became the
him the most expensive Ivory Coast player in history.
He moved again, to Chelsea for the following season,in July 2004 for £24 million , making
In 2006,after Damien Duff depart to Newcastle,he switched from shirt number 15 to 11.He
make a personal succes as he hit 33 goals in all competition including 20 in Premier League
to win the Golden Boot.He became the first Chelsea player since Kerry Dixon,1984-85 to
reach 30 goals in a season.
African Footballer of the Year.
In 2007,he had been crowned as the Ivorian Player of The Year.Then,in March,he named as
2007-08 ,26 April 2008,he faced a controversy after a clash with Nemaja Vidic.An earlier
incident November 2006 where Drogba elbowed Vidic.Drogba get a yellow card was
adequate punishment by the FA.
His full name is Didier Yves Drogba Tebily,born at Abidijan,Ivory Coast,
March,11 ,1978.
When he was 5,he was sent to France by his parents to live in his uncle,Michel
Goba,professional footballer.After 3 years,he returned to Abidjan, because of homesick.
Drogba's family travelled to France in1991.Then, in 1996,Drogba starts his career as a junior
player in a semi pro club,Levallios.His good perfomances earned place in senior squad.
Then he moved to Le Mans in 1997,an Ligue 2 club and he is 18 years old but only for several
years.
Drogba is married to Alla,a Malian women whom he met in Paris,and they have three
children together,Isaac , Joel and Freddy Drogba.
third highest scorer.in the league with 19 goals and making it to 2004 UEFA Cup Final
In 2003,he moved ,again, to Olympique de Marseille for £3.3 million.There,he became the
him the most expensive Ivory Coast player in history.
He moved again, to Chelsea for the following season,in July 2004 for £24 million , making
In 2006,after Damien Duff depart to Newcastle,he switched from shirt number 15 to 11.He
make a personal succes as he hit 33 goals in all competition including 20 in Premier League
to win the Golden Boot.He became the first Chelsea player since Kerry Dixon,1984-85 to
reach 30 goals in a season.
African Footballer of the Year.
In 2007,he had been crowned as the Ivorian Player of The Year.Then,in March,he named as
2007-08 ,26 April 2008,he faced a controversy after a clash with Nemaja Vidic.An earlier
incident November 2006 where Drogba elbowed Vidic.Drogba get a yellow card was
adequate punishment by the FA.
next page
from August to November due to knee problem.
In 2008-09,he suffered a string of injuries early of the season,and miss many games
He then decided to stay with " the blues " under a new coach,Carlo Ancellotti and
sign a new contract.
Late 2009,he announced he would be donating 3 million GBP for the construction of a
hospital in his hometown,Abidjan.He also created " Didier Drogba Foundation" and
Chelsea say they also would donate for the foundation.
In March 2010,he was named as the 2009 African Footballer of The Year,his second
time winning the award .On 4 June Drogba fractured his elbow in friendly match with
Japan, just several days before 2010 World Cup.
