Former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has gone down in history as a legend of the club, however there was a very realistic possibility that he left the Blues before making his biggest impact.
Drogba won nearly every honour that was on offer across two stints at Stamford Bridge, with his crowning moment coming with the winning penalty in the 2012 Champions League final.
In his time in England, the Ivory Coast international established himself as one of the most difficult forwards for defenders to deal with. Kolo Toure named Drogba as a tougher opponent than Harry Kane.
Despite his status at the club now, there was a very realistic prospect of Drogba leaving the Blues just a few years into his time in West London.
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Didier Drogba had ‘dream’ of leaving Chelsea and joining AC Milan
In the mid 2000s, AC Milan were seen as one of the ideal landing spots for a player to move to, and this was the same for Drogba.
Sky Sports reported in 2008 that the striker was dreaming of a move from Milan, quoting him from his own autobiography following a meeting with the Serie A club in 2006.
Drogba said: “All footballers dream of signing for Milan. I explained to Paolo Maldini that Milan is a club I would love to join.
“Whenever you want, it’s all up to you – get the money ready and go see Chelsea.”
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How Chelsea could have looked without Drogba
If Drogba had departed the club at this time, it is likely that Jose Mourinho would have handed more opportunities for Andriy Shevchenko to stake his claim at Stamford Bridge.
The former Ballon d’Or winner did not hit the heights that were promised in the Premier League, however he was competing with Drogba for a place in the side frequently.
If things didn’t work out with the Ukrainian, then there would have been a lot of pressure on Nicolas Anelka, whose time at Chelsea is already seen as a success.
In truth, it is more likely Chelsea would have looked to the transfer market earlier than 2011, when they spent big money to sign Fernando Torres from Liverpool.
Sergio Aguero was a player the club admired before his move to Manchester City, and it will always remain a mystery whether the Blues looked to him to fill the void that Drogba’s departure would have left.