Former Chelsea Player Didier Drogba shared what transpired within the Chelsea team, before they emerged as Champions League winners in 2012.
Didier Drogba while speaking sometimes ago said, following the lay-off of the then Chelsea coach Villas-Boas, who was sacked by the club after some series of poor results.
Drogba explained how the team responded to that ordeal.
” We the players had a team meeting where we acknowledged our part of the responsibility for his departure. Captain John Terry spoke, Frank Lampard, Petr Cech and the other leaders of the group also spoke”
“We then decided to put all our strength into the Champions League even though we had just lost 3-1 against Napoli in the first leg of the round of 16. We had been chasing this trophy for 8 years and we hadn’t finished better than runner-up”.
Everyone decided to put their egos aside and fight for each other, with the same goal.
After that meeting, I asked 23-year-old Juan Mata for help: “Please, Maestro, help me win the Champions League.”
He looked at me like he was saying, “Man, you’re crazy. You’re Didier Drogba, it’s up to you to help me win.”
I replied that “I have been at Chelsea for 8 years and I have never won it. So believe me, you are the guy who will help us win it. I will even give you a gift if we win it.”
Three months later, we were in Munich for the final, in their stadium submerged in a red wave. Bayern were leading 1-0 with 8 minutes remaining and I was discouraged. But a young man named Juan Mata told me:
“Keep believing Didier, you have to keep believing”.
Me, I was in tears and I answered him: “Believe in what? It’s over, I’m going to cry like a few months ago when I lost the AFCON final with Ivory Coast.”
And then, we play the final minute and we get a corner. Last minute, last corner. Juan Mata takes it and the rest is history! The lesson of all this is “ALWAYS BELIEVE”
