Didier Yves Drogba Tébily
(born 11 March 1978) is an Ivorian footballer who plays in the centre
forward position. He currently plays for Chelsea in the Premier League,
where he is deputy vice-captain, and is the captain and all-time top
scorer of the Côte d'Ivoire national football team. He has scored more
goals for Chelsea than any other foreign player and is currently
Chelsea's Fourth highest goal scorer of all time. His key attributes
include his physical strength, ability in the air, and his power to
retain possession of the ball.
After playing in youth teams, Drogba made his professional debut aged 18 for Ligue 2 club Le Mans. A late bloomer, he signed his first professional contract aged 21; it was not until the 2002–03 season that he realized his potential, scoring 17 goals in 34 appearances in Ligue 1 for Guingamp. During the same season he made his first international appearance for Côte d'Ivoire, in September, and scored his first international goal the following February. He moved to Olympique de Marseille in 2003 for £3.3 million. His scoring success at Olympique de Marseille continued, finishing as the third highest scorer in Ligue 1 with 19 goals and helped the club to reach 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 Ivoirian player in history. In addition, he scored decisive goals in the 2005 Football League Cup Final and in the 2005 FA Community Shield 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 Côte d'Ivoire'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 Football League Cup Final 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 winning their first double in the club's 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 six English Cup finals.
