There are very few moments in soccer when a team faces its own former star player who is still amongst the best for his former team. The fact becomes even more significant when a manager known not to easily praise his opponents does so, yes, we are talking about one of the finest soccer brains in contemporary football, Chelsea’s second term serving Portuguese football manager José Mourinho who has been as attacking these days as a leaguer topper should be. He unexpectedly praised his former teammate Didier Drogba, who now plays for Galatasaray, and calls him as the finest forward in modern era. Yes, he said this considering the age of ace forward and also added that he may not be as fit as he had been at 26, yet, it doesn’t diminish his caliber. Notably, Turkish professional football club will face Blues in the second leg of last 16 at Stamford Bridge tomorrow hence an admiration from opponent means a lot at this time. Generally, ‘intelligent’ managers do so intentionally just to make their opponent overconfident and prone to make mistakes, but this does not look to be the case with Mourinho coz Drogba has been an integral part of their A-team for more than eight years. He has played some 342 games and scored 157 goals in them, which means, he is one of the legendry strikers for North London club.
Talking about his current form and if growing age has any impact over him, 51-year-old Portuguese said, “Is he the same player at 36 years old as he was at 26? Nobody is, but he is certainly still one of the best strikers in the world. He is undoubtedly one of the most important players in the history of the club. All Chelsea supporters, we agree with that.”
Significantly, Drogba was voted as the best Chelsea player ever by the fans in 2012, therefore, there is no reason such a talent should not return to his old charm. Though, there is no definite time frame he would come back to Stamford Bridge, Mourinho is still hopeful and added, “I think it has to happen one day. When, I don’t know. As a player, as a coach, as an ambassador, next year, in four, five years, in 10 years, I don’t know. But when a person represents so much to a club and when a club represents so much to a person, and that’s the case, I think he has to be back one day.”
It is yet to be seen if this 36-year-old would have any impact on the match, yet fans would enjoy watching their former best infiltrating their existing defense!