Didier Yves Drogba Tébily popularly known as Didier Drogba is a famous Ivorian professional and international footballer, investor, entrepreneur and a philanthropist, who played as a forward striker for his country Ivory Coast national team and a former forward striker for English Premier League club Chelsea.
He currently plays for American club Phoenix Rising as a forward striker. He has been described as one of the greatest and most creative footballers in Africa and also one of the most successful footballers in Africa. He is the all-time top goal scorer and former captain of the Ivory Coast national team.
He was born on 11th March 1978 in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. He is currently 40 years old. At the age of 5 years old, Didier Drogba was sent to France by his parents to live with his uncle, Miche Goba, a professional footballer. However, Didier Drogba soon became homesick and returned to Abidjan after three years.
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After immigrating to France at an early age, Didier Drogba became a star soccer player in his adopted country France and later led the world-famous Chelsea club to multiple championships. When Didier Drogba finished school he moved to the city of Le Mans to study accountancy at the university. He had to change clubs and becoming an apprentice at Ligue 2 club in Le Mans.
Didier Drogba is currently the all-time top goal scorer and also the captain for his country Ivory Coast national team. He is best known for his career at Chelsea and has been regarded as the highest goal scorer in English Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League history. He has scored more goals for Chelsea than any other foreign player in the world and is currently the club’s fourth highest goal scorer of all time.
In 2006 and 2009 respectively, Didier Drogba was named as the African Footballer of the Year. After playing in youth teams, Didier Drogba made his professional debut at the age of 18 years old for Ligue 2 club “Le Mans” and signed his first professional contract deal with the club at the age of 21 years old.
After finishing the 2002-2003 seasons for Ligue 1 side “Guingamp” with 17 goals in 34 appearances, Didier Drogba moved to Olympique de Marseille, where he finished as the third highest goal scorer in the 2003-2004 seasons with over 19 goals and helped the club to reach the 2004 UEFA Cup Final.
In July 2004, Didier Drogba was signed to English Premier League club Chelsea on a transfer worth £24 million, making him the most expensive Ivorian player in history. In his debut season he helped Chelsea to win their first league title in 50 years, and a year later he won another Premier League title with the club.
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In March 2012, Didier Drogba became the first African player to score 100 goals in Premier League history. Few months later, he scored in Chelsea’s 2012 FA Cup Final victory against Liverpool to become the first player to score in four separate FA Cup finals.
Didier Drogba also played in the 2012 UEFA Champions League final, a match in which he scored an 88th-minute equalizer goal against Bayern Munich. After spending 6 months with Shanghai Shenhu in China and one season with Turkish club Galatasaray where he scored the winning goal in the final of the 2013 Turkish Super Cup, In July 2004, Didier Drogba returned back to Chelsea.
After scoring 10 goals in 10 finals and winning 10 trophies at club level, Didier Drogba has been referred to as the ultimate big game player of all time by several media organization. In 2015, Didier Drogba joined the Canadian club “Montreal Impact” as a Designated Player and played 41 matches for over two seasons with the club and scoring over 23 goals.
Didier Drogba was an active Ivory Coast international player between 2002 and 2014. In 2006, Didier Drogba captained the national team of Ivory Coast from 2006 until his retirement from the Ivory Coast national team in 2014. During his time in Ivory Coast national team, he was the nation’s all-time top goal scorer with over 65 goals from 104 appearances.
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In 2006, Didier Drogba led the Ivory Coast to the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He later captained the Ivory Coast national team at the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups. He was part of the Ivory Coast national teams that reached the final of the Africa Cup of Nations in 2006 and 2012, but unfortunately, they were beaten on penalties on both occasions. On 8th August 2014, Didier Drogba announced his retirement from international football.
Didier Drogba is currently married to Diakité Lalla, a lady from Mali, whom he met in Paris, France. Didier Drogba and his wife Diakité Lalla are currently blessed with three lovely children. His eldest son named Isaac Drogba, was born in France in 1999, but grew up in England and has played in the Chelsea academy system. In 2018, his first son Isaac Drogba signed a contract deal with French club Guingamp in Paris, France.
Didier Drogba has two younger brothers who are also footballers. He is a devoted Roman Catholic. His uncle, Michael Goba is also a professional footballer and Ivory Coast ex international. His cousin Kevi Goba, is also a professional footballer who played in the lower leagues of France.
Didier Drogba in the cause of his career as an international footballer has won several awards which include African Footballer of the Year, Ivory Coast Player of the Year, FIFA Ballon d‘Or, FIFA World Player of the Year, BBC African Footballer of the Year, amongst others.
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Didier Drogba is currently one of the richest and most influential football player in Ivory Coast with an estimated net worth of $90 million.
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