Sat, Oct 20, 2007 page18

• Drogba says he's determined to leave Chelsea

  ITCHY FEET The Ivory Cost striker said he had wanted to leave Stamford Bridge since the day he arrived, despite signing a new four-year contract last year

  • AFP
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  Didier Drogba has admitted he is determined to quit Chelsea because Jose Mourinho's departure has shattered morale at Stamford Bridge.

  Drogba was devastated when Mourinho left the Premier League club last month following the breakdown of the Portuguese manager's relationship with Blues owner Roman Abramovich.

  The Ivory Coast striker believes the damage to Chelsea's spirit has been so dramatic that it will be hard for them to get back on track, making it impossible for him to stay.

  

  Chelsea striker Didier Drogba tries to control the ball during their UEFA Champions League match against FC Porto at the Dragao Stadium in Porto, Portugal, in February. Drogba has said he is determined to quit Chelsea because Jose Mourinho's departure has shattered morale at Stamford Bridge.

  PHOTO: AFP

  unrest

  Avram Grant, who replaced Mourinho, has insisted the squad are united behind him, but reports of unrest amongst the players have circulated for several weeks and Drogba has lifted the lid on the problems simmering behind the scenes.

  "I want to leave Chelsea," he is quoted as saying in the latest issue of France Football magazine. "Something is broken with Chelsea."

  "The damage has been big in the dressing room because we know now what happened and who caused Mourinho's departure," he said. "Nothing can stop me from leaving now."

  Drogba, who was in tears when Mourinho said farewell to the team, has been the club's most dangerous striker since arriving from Marseille in July 2004.

  Last season, he was the first Chelsea player to score 30 goals in a campaign since Kerry Dixon in the 1980s and almost single-handedly dragged the club to the FA and League Cup double with final winners against Manchester United and Arsenal.

  But Drogba revealed he has keen to leave the club since his traumatic first season, when he was criticized strongly for diving, and was adamant that not even the mooted signings of Barcelona star Ronaldinho and AC Milan's Kaka could persuade him to stay.

  dream

  Drogba believes he must think of his own career now and he claimed a move to a club that makes him dream would be ideal. He named Barcelona, Real Madrid, AC Milan and Inter Milan as his preferred destinations and he would even consider a return to Marseille.

  "Since the day I arrived, I wanted to leave Chelsea and then again every summer," he said.

  "I know that Ronaldinho and Kaka are linked to come next season but even that won't change my mind," he said.

  Drogba could not leave until the transfer window re-opens in January at the earliest, but Chelsea will be desperate to keep their talismanic striker and it would be no surprise if Grant and Abramovich moved quickly to try to placate him.

  Chelsea responded by issuing a statement on their Web site insisting Drogba would see out the new four-year contract he signed last year.

  The statement said: "Didier Drogba signed a four-year contract last year. As a top professional we are sure Didier is committed to Chelsea and intends to honor that contract."
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