Chelsea legend Didier Drogba has been inducted into the Premier League’s hall of fame, the Ivorian becomes the second Blues player to receive the honour after Frank Lampard. Drogba spent nine seasons at Stamford Bridge between 2004 and 2015 and forged a reputation as one of the most feared strikers in Europe as the focal point of their incredible success.
Drogba’s 104 top flight goals in 254 appearances helped the Blues win four Premier League titles during his two spells in west London, he also won the golden boot in the 2006/7 and 2009/10 seasons. The Ivorian was a traditional centre-forward who used his height, aerial ability, pace and power to bully defences and score every type of goal imaginable.
The Blues legend was inducted as part of the 2022 Hall of Fame alongside Wayne Rooney, Patrick Vieira, Paul Scholes, Sergio Aguero, Peter Schmeichel, Vincent Kompany and Ian Wright. And Drogba revealed his delight and pride at being recognised alongside some of the modern greats of the English game.
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"I played with fantastic players for some amazing managers and against brilliant opponents, he told the Premier League's official website. "I'm so happy to say that I won the Premier League four times – and now I'm in the Hall of Fame with some of those great players I played alongside and against, which makes me very proud."
Former Newcastle striker and all-time leading Premier League top scorer Alan Shearer recently hailed Drogba as the greatest African player to play in the league's history. Competition for such an accolade is incredibly fierce given the storied careers of the likes of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Yaya Toure; but Shearer insists that Drogba is number one.
“For me, it’s Drogba. Shearer said on Match of the Day’s Top 10 podcast. “Just for the fact that he has four Premier League titles, four FA Cups, nine goals in nine cup finals, one Champions League title and 177 goals (overall) for Chelsea, that is for me.”
