« Back to article

Print this article

Drogba, man of the moment for Chelsea

Didier Drogba scored Chelsea's goal and their winning Champions League penalty against Bayern Munich on Saturday and then solemnly appeared to say his farewells.

-Chelsea storm final frontier to win Champions League

The 34-year-old Ivory Coast striker capped his eight years in London by lifting the trophy that his boss Roman Abramovich has longed for since buying the club in 2003. Then he was named man of the match.

But the big striker, who has failed to reach agreement with the club over a new contract, accepted the accolade with what sounded like a valedictory speech and side-stepped questions about his future.

-Drogba fires Chelsea to Champions League glory

"I don't think we can take decisions in emotional moments like this. The most important thing is not my future, the most important thing is what we achieved today," he said.

"I want to say thank you to all the players I've been playing with since I've been here and all the managers. They have improved me as a player and as a person."

Drogba has a knack of scoring in finals

The exuberant Ivorian, who delighted fans and worried club security by dancing on the roof of the team bus when Chelsea won their first English title in 50 years in his first season at the club, said he just felt very happy.

"Today it's a great day for the club, for our fans, for the players. I don't really know if there's enough words to describe how I feel now," he said.

The striker has developed a knack of scoring in finals, hitting home in Chelsea's 2-1 FA Cup final over Liverpool earlier this month, when he became the first man in the FA Cup to score in four finals.

'In Moscow it was very difficult'

But Saturday's 88th-minute header against the run of play after Bayern had gone ahead five minutes earlier, wiped out the misery of Chelsea's defeat on penalties four years ago against Manchester United in Moscow, when he was sent off.

-Shootout win was never in doubt: Lampard

"In Moscow it was very difficult. It was very painful for the players, for the club and the fans and today we managed to change all that in an amazing game, equalising in the last minutes and then with the penalty shootout," he said.

Drogba, demonstrative and histrionic on the pitch as he is quietly courteous and softly spoken off it, has divided opinion in English football, but few would deny his impact on the game during the time that Chelsea have won two English titles four FA Cups and now the Champions League.

'That was the last kick of the season and what a way to do it'

He said he had felt calm and confident taking the last penalty despite missing one earlier this year in the African Nations Cup final.

Source:
© Copyright 2024 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.