According to reports, Chelsea legend Didier Drogba is set to join Guus Hiddink’s coaching staff at Stamford Bridge. The 37-year-old, who left the club at the end of the 2014-15 season, would be an excellent addition and the Ivory Coast international would be able to offer plenty of advice and guidance, especially to Chelsea’s young stars.
While Drogba doesn’t have much coaching experience, he’s certainly an intelligent footballer and could follow in the footsteps of former Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka, who is now the player-manager of Mumbai City FC. We aren’t suggesting that Drogba will be the future player-manager of Chelsea but he could hone his skills as a manager under Hiddink before moving on to become a head coach elsewhere.
Huge respect
So first and foremost, the Ivorian would bring both leadership and guidance to Chelsea’s attacking unit. Other than Diego Costa, the Blues don’t really have a key personality in attack and Drogba’s influence could see the likes of Kenedy and Bertrand Traore improve considerably in the near future. Chelsea have a number of talented youngsters and somebody with Drogba’s experience really could help their starlets to progress further.
However, it isn’t just the forward-minded players that Drogba could help. Having a club legend on the training field should help to boost the morale of the entire squad and Chelsea may start to string together a run of results. As of January 14th, they sit just six points above the relegation zone but are far from considered as favourites for the drop and they have the players to turn their form around. With Drogba’s impact on the training ground and in the dressing room, there’s no reason why the Blues can’t enjoy a relatively successful second half of the season.
Still to play for
Fortunately for the Blues, they are still in contention to challenge for both the Champions League and, perhaps more realistically, the FA Cup. Drogba has won both of these competitions and knows what needs to be done in order to succeed. It will take more than advice from a club legend for Chelsea to win Europe’s elite club tournament this season but his words of wisdom certainly won’t harm their chances.
As for the FA Cup, Chelsea stand as good a chance as anyone in the competition. In their third round clash, Hiddink showed just how seriously he will take the FA Cup by selecting an extremely strong side for the visit of Scunthorpe United. The Blues cruised to a 2-0 victory and will be quietly confident of going all the way to Wembley. Chelsea won the FA Cup during Hiddink’s first stint as interim boss and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see the Blues emulate that feat once again.
Intelligent
Without a doubt, Didier Drogba is one of the classiest footballers to grace the Stamford Bridge turf – but he’s also knowledgeable and smart. These two traits gave him a distinct advantage during his playing days and he can use these to his benefit whilst coaching as well. Chelsea’s Diego Costa looks back to his best but, with a few tips from Drogba, there’s no reason why he cannot prove himself as one of the best strikers in the world.
So aside from the intelligence, experience and ability to influence Chelsea’s younger stars, what else would Drogba bring? Personality and passion – two crucial attributes for success. Drogba’s huge and happy persona earned him plenty of plaudits in the past and it is high time that he passed all of his skills and knowledge on. If Chelsea’s forward unit start to shine, the Blues could be in business and will be very difficult to beat.