Didier Drogba retired as one of the greatest strikers of his generation. However, William Saliba has now argued that Chelsea once had a centre-forward who was even better.
Of course, Didier Drogba is remembered in Chelsea’s history as one of their best players. The powerful frontman scored 164 times in 381 Blues appearances, but that doesn’t highlight the number of times he scored in big moments. He won 14 major trophies across two spells at Stamford Bridge, too.
Earlier this year, Wayne Rooney admitted he would have loved playing with Drogba, but the duo were in competition for so long during some epic battles between Chelsea and Manchester United.
Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty ImagesWilliam Saliba says Samuel Eto’o was better than Didier Drogba
During an interview this week, Arsenal defender William Saliba mentioned Ivory Coast and Chelsea legend Drogba when discussing African greats. However, he actually rates Cameroon icon Samuel Eto’o as the elite footballer from the African continent.
When asked if Eto’o was underrated, Saliba told Sky Sports Premier League: “Yeah, for me he is the biggest African player of all-time, Drogba is a legend, but for me Eto’o is better.”
Eto’o, who was another iconic striker at the start of the 21st century, had an incredible career for both club and country.
He actually had a brief spell at Stamford Bridge between 2013 and 2014, scoring 12 goals in 35 Chelsea appearances. However, his prime years came earlier, notably at Barcelona, Inter Milan and Mallorca.
ClubAppearancesGoalsBarcelona199130Mallorca16270Inter Milan10253The goalscoring record of Samuel Eto’o at certain clubs
For what it’s worth, we don’t see a lot between Drogba and Eto’o when you compare what the formidable strikers achieved in their careers. It is ultimately down to personal preference in what you want in attack.
Of course, Drogba shades it for us because of his Chelsea heroics.
Yaya Toure believes Drogba should have won the Ballon d’Or during his phenomenal career. The highest he ever ranked for the individual award was fourth in 2007, while Eto’o finished fifth in 2009.
Photo by AMA/Corbis via Getty ImagesChelsea still searching for Didier Drogba successor many years later
Fans at Stamford Bridge may not see a striker with as much aura and ability as Drogba play for Chelsea again.
In fairness, Diego Costa was outstanding for the Blues between 2014 and 2017. He’s the closest anybody has come to succeeding Drogba as the bullish centre-forward to lead the line.
Gary Lineker hopes Liam Delap can emulate Drogba in West London, but it will take something truly remarkable for anyone to match him. At the moment, Joao Pedro is the new Chelsea attacker shining brightest this season.