Didier Drogba is a legend at Chelsea FC. After 381 competitive appearances and 164 goals, let’s countdown his 10 finest efforts for the Blues.
Chelsea’s Didier Drogba will never be forgotten at Stamford Bridge and with 164 competitive goals he shouldn’t be. He won four Premier League titles, four FA Cups, three League Cups and the prized Champions League for his troubles – a list that can only be matched by few (Frank Lampard, John Terry, Petr Cech…John Obi Mikel…).
Let’s take a moment to celebrate his career at Stamford Bridge and count-down his top 10 goals for Chelsea FC.
10. Tottenham Hotspur, 24/02/08
League Cup Final, Wembley Stadium
Drogba scored many wonderful free-kicks throughout his time in West London, but this particular one against Tottenham sticks out for a couple of reasons.
First of all, the opponent. It’s a goal scored against Spurs which raises it a few levels in any Chelsea supporter’s mind. It’s also in a cup final, the 2008 Carling (League) Cup Final to be precise, and as he has done on numerous occasions, Drogba steps up to the plate to hit the back of the net for the Blues in the biggest of stages.
The strike isn’t too shabby either. Close to 30 yards out from goal and in a fairly central position, the Ivorian lines the ball up. Off a couple of steps he smashes it with an open right foot into the bottom right corner. Paul Robinson is firmly rooted to this spot in the Tottenham net and can do nothing but watch it sail by him.
This would be the opening goal of the contest, although the Blues would go on to lose the game. An error by Petr Cech in the 94th minute would gift Jonathan Woodgate the opportunity to win it, which he would not fail to take.
Oh well, you win some, you lose some.
Next: No. 9 - Portsmouth
9. Portsmouth, 03/03/07
Premier League, Fratton Park
The entry in at number nine is a great goal that you may even want to file under the ‘impossible’ category.
Ashley Cole finds himself with possession of the ball on the near corner of the box. He spots Drogba moving about the far post and clips a cross towards him. With the ball carrying a tad too much weight, the Ivorian is forced wide and closer to the byline.
Nevertheless, he remains unfazed and strikes the ball on the volley from a ridiculous angle. It thunders across goalkeeper David James and into the opposite corner. Just silly, really.
This is would be the first goal in a 2-0 win over Portsmouth, as the Blues tried to keep the pressure on eventual champions Manchester United.
Next: No. 8 - Bolton Wanderers
8. Bolton Wanderers, 24/01/11
Premier League, The Reebok Stadium
This is the first of a few open play long-range efforts on the list, and perhaps controversially down at number eight.
Florent Malouda (remember him?) dispossesses the Bolton right-back and the ball squirts out to Drogba. Malouda then makes a darting run down the left flank, hoping that the Ivorian will play him on the overlap.
Drogba, though, has no such intention. Seemingly mystified by the ridiculous amount of space that he has found himself in, he ignores all options and ventures forward a little. Drogba then looks up before unleashing his right foot. He powers through the ball sending it moving and wobbling all over the place on its way to Jussi Jaaskelainen’s net. The goalkeeper is just outright confused and is unable to get a hand on it.
This effort would be one of four Blues goals in a 4-0 victory as they would try to get their title defence back on track after a shaky start.
Next: No. 7 - Arsenal
7. Arsenal, 03/10/10
Premier League, Stamford Bridge
This is the first entry scored at Chelsea’s home ground and is one that just oozes with class.
Ramires initially splits open the Arsenal defence with a great pass to play in Ashley Cole down the left flank. The full-back manages to chase down the ball and crosses it at the first time of asking towards the edge of the six-yard box.
Drogba, meanwhile, makes his way towards the near post although he is tightly shadowed by Sebastien Squillaci. As a result, the striker is forced to improvise a clever finish as he turns and backheels the ball past Lukasz Fabianski’s near post. Grace and class indeed.
This would be one of two Chelsea goals in a 2-0 win over a poor Arsenal side that would see them extend their lead atop the Premier League table. The Blues, though, would fail to retain their crown come May.
Next: No. 6 - Hull City
6. Hull City, 15/08/09
Premier League, Stamford Bridge
Ok. Let’s just start this off by saying that he meant it. We’re agreed, yeah? Good.
This is sublime from Drogba as he kickstarts the 2009/10 Premier League campaign in dramatic style. A great Blues move is started by the Ivorian, who cushions a ball around the corner to Salomon Kalou. He receives the ball back from his fellow countryman and ploughs forward.
He then exchanges passes with Deco, who slips him in down the left flank. What follows is a ridiculous chip from basically the byline that sails over the head of Boaz Myhill into the far side of the net.
What’s even better is that this was a 92nd minute winner. After falling 1-0 down to the Tigers, Drogba single-handedly turned the game around for Chelsea having netted the equaliser as well. This would give the Blues exactly the start they wanted as they would go on to lift the Premier League at the end of the season.
Now to the top 5…
Next: No. 5 - Tottenham Hotspur
5. Tottenham Hotspur, 15/04/12
FA Cup Semi-Final, Wembley Stadium
Ever the man for the big occasion, I don’t really know where to start with this one. “Oooaaaahh. Magnificent!” exclaims the commentator, and with good reason too.
Frank Lampard picks the ball up 30 yards from his own net and looks up to spot Drogba far off in the distance. Undeterred, he lumps a ball up to the big man who controls it on his chest with his back to goal. He then uses his right boot to flick the bouncing ball to the left of his marker, and takes the opportunity to turn and run after it.
Ex-Blue William Gallas sticks with him, but does not have enough physical strength to match Drogba who holds him off. Now in a more challenging wide position, he unleashes his left foot through the ball to rocket it into the top left corner.
Chelsea would defeat Spurs 5-1 to send them to the final where Drogba would again produce the goods, scoring the winner in a 2-1 victory over Liverpool. This would be part of Roberto Di Matteo’s (in)famous double-winning season as they would bag the Champions League as well. But more on that later.
Next: No.4 - Barcelona
4. Barcelona, 18/10/06
Champions League, Stamford Bridge
Another goal in which the Ivorian starts with his back to goal. Ashley Cole feeds Drogba the ball which he appears to miscontrol and get stuck under his feet. Perhaps it was a mistake or perhaps it was an elaborate set-up to allow himself to do what he did next.
With it under him, he uses his right instep to flick the ball and send two Barcelona defenders in the wrong direction, in the process engineering the smallest of spaces to get a shot away. In the end, that is all he needs as he strikes the ball on the turn and rifles it past Victor Valdes.
The sheer coordination required to connect so cleanly like that is impressive, let alone the skill and awareness to create the space to begin with.
This would be the only goal in a Chelsea victory during an European campaign that would see the Blues once again fall to Liverpool in the semi-finals. Speaking of Liverpool…
Next: No.3 - Liverpool
3. Liverpool, 17/09/06
Premier League, Stamford Bridge
Perhaps Drogba should just do everything facing the wrong way? Shopping, eating, watching TV…he seems to be much better like that.
In truth there was very little to choose between this and the Barcelona goal, but I’ve chosen to shove this effort in at number 3. Chelsea employ another long ball towards the big man, with Frank Lampard again doing the feeding. He takes the ball on his chest with his back to goal although his touch forces him a bit further away from the net.
However, this makes no difference as he goes after it and strikes it with his supposed weak foot on the swivel. Pepe Reina has no chance and just watches it fly past him before doing that hand gesture thing which probably roughly translates to “Oh well”. The power the Ivorian generates on the turn just underlines his talent, and once again this is an example of him turning up in a big game.
In fact, this would be the winner in a 1-0 victory while Drogba would go on to score 20 league goals, and 33 competitive ones, in the campaign.
Next: No.2 - Everton
2. Everton, 17/12/2006
Premier League, Goodison Park
This the fifth entry from his prolific 2006/07 season, and YET AGAIN sees him initially facing the wrong way. Third-choice goalkeeper Hilario boots the ball up into the midfield where Andriy Shevchenko rises high to meet it. His nod finds Drogba with his back to goal (obviously) who takes it on his chest (obviously).
This time, however, the touch is more helpful as it allows him to immediately turn and face Tim Howard. He lets the ball bounce and waits for it to reach the optimal height before driving his foot through it some 30 yards out. An absolute rocket, Howard is more than anything beaten for pace as the strike clips the underside of the crossbar, just about squeezing into the net.
This would cap a remarkable come-back for the Blues in which Lampard’s 80th minute equaliser preceded this 86th minute winner. It would end 3-2 to the good guys.
Frankly, in terms of quality this should really be number 1, but I think you will understand why it isn’t…
Next: No. 1 - Bayern Munich
1. Bayern Munich, 19/06/12
Champions League Final, Allianz Arena
Was there really any comeptition? Yes, this may not be as impressive as some of the other strikes on this list, but for a Blues fan this goal cannot, and probably will not, be beaten. Ever.
He may not have his back to goal, but once again the Ivorian popped up at an important time in a massive match to deliver the goods for Chelsea. Having been poor all game, the Blues conceded in the 83rd minute thanks to Thomas Muller to fall 1-0 down. At this stage the fairytale seemed all but dead.
But we really should have trusted Gary Neville when he screamed that it was “written in the stars” following Fernando Torres’s goal against Barcelona.
Juan Mata took the corner in the dying minutes as Chelsea threw everything they didn’t have at Bayern. Who was there to meet it? None other than Didier Drogba. The Ivorian just wanted it more than any other player and leapt to power the header inside of the near post. Cue absolutely unbelievable scenes.
“They’ve pulled the rabbit out of the hat again!” shouted Martin Tyler.
“Oooaoaoaooooaoaoaoaaooooaaoaoooaoaaaah!” (or something to that effect) cried Gary Neville.
The final chapter in the most ridiculous, lucky, call it whatever you want Champions League campaign had not been closed yet, as Drogba’s equaliser sent the game to extra time.
Heroics from Petr Cech in keeping out an Arjen Robben penalty in the first half of ET (given for a Drogba foul) meant that we were headed to a penalty shoot-out. We all know what happened next and so, for closure, here is that winning spot kick:
Next: Chelsea FC’s 50 Greatest Players Of All-Time
What’s your favourite entry? Have I missed some goals out? Is the order wrong? Get involved and sound off in the comments below!