Few forwards in Premier League history have been as physically dominant and feared as Chelsea icon Didier Drogba, whose clinical finishing and big-game mentality were instrumental in the Blues’ success throughout the 2000s and 2010s.
The former Ivory Coast international helped Chelsea to four Premier League titles, four FA Cups and the Champions League in 2011-12 during his iconic nine-year stint in the Premier League.
While Drogba was a nightmare for Premier League defenders, he was just as tough on those around him in training, with former Chelsea teammate Steve Sidwell revealing how the Ivorian once lost his temper with a colleague at Cobham.
Drogba ‘Wanted to Kill’ Tal Ben Haim
Drogba
Sidwell, who spent the 2007-08 season at Chelsea alongside Drogba, revealed the Ivorian once ‘wanted to kill’ teammate Tal Ben Haim after a tackle in training.
Back in 2021, Sidwell recalled the incident with Ben Haim and revealed that Jose Mourinho, Chelsea’s manager at the time, ‘loved’ Drogba’s heated reaction. Sidwell said:
“There were leaders. Terry, Lampard, Essien, Drogba, Ballack – there were leaders in there.
“In training, people were smashing the hell out of each other.
“I remember Essien snapping Shevchenko in half.
“Tal Ben Haim going through Drogba, Drogba getting up saying, ‘I want to kill him’. Mourinho saying, ‘I need him on Saturday, you can kill him next week’.
“But he (Mourinho) loved that, I think he thrived off that.”
As well as Sidwell, Tal Ben Haim spent just a single season at Chelsea, making 13 Premier League appearances during the 2007-08 campaign.
The former central defender was behind John Terry, Ricardo Carvalho and Alex in the pecking order, while his confrontation with manager Avram Grant also did him no favours.
After publicly criticising Grant over his limited playing time – saying he would never have joined Chelsea had he known Mourinho would be replaced by the Israeli manager – Ben Haim was fined two weeks’ wages and left for Manchester City at the end of the season.
Wayne Bridge Reveals Shocking Ben Haim Moment
Tal Ben Haim
Tal Ben Haim
Ben Haim’s short stint at Stamford Bridge was marked by multiple intense moments in training, with former Chelsea teammate Wayne Bridge revealing the Israeli defender once came to blows with Andriy Shevchenko.
After pushing things too far in training with tough challenges on the Ukrainian striker, Ben Haim ended up on the receiving end of Shevchenko’s anger.
Speaking on the Dressing Room podcast, Bridge recalled the heated training ground bust-up between his two former Chelsea colleagues:
“Tal loved to smash people. I think there were a couple of incidents between them. I think Sheva gave him a warning.
“You know what Tal is like. Then there was another smash from Tal.
“They both basically ended up in each other's faces. And the combo Sheva threw.
“Unbelievable. It was something like a jab, cross, hook, cross. Bang, bang, bang, bang! Game over. It was done mate.
“You just move on then, it was sorted. Tal just had to swallow a bit of pride and move on. And just don't go near Sheva again.”
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