Drogba gets permission to play for Ivory Coast
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has confirmed he will play for the Ivory Coast in the African Nations Cup – with Jose Mourinho’s full blessing.
It had been thought the Chelsea boss was not keen on the 27-year-old striker joining up with his country in January with the Premiership champions in search of more silverware at home and abroad.
But Drogba will travel to Egypt for the tournament with the full approval of his manager.
“It’s time to put an end to all of the rumours and criticisms against my coach and club, Chelsea,” Drogba said on his personal website www.didierdrogba.com.
“I’ll be playing in the African Cup with my coach’s approval!”
The striker also revealed he will be leading the attack against Liverpool in their final Champions League group game tonight without being fully fit.
Drogba insists he is still struggling to fully recover from the knee injury he sustained on international duty.
“Since the match against Romania, I’ve been having knee pains which didn’t prevent me from playing against Italy but which got worse after that,” explained Drogba.
“That’s why I didn’t play in the Champions League match against Anderlecht.
“Considering the score, my coach was wise enough to rest me so my injury didn’t get worse and to give young Carlton Cole a chance to play.
“Since then, I’ve been receiving treatment but Hernan Crespo’s recent injury has brought me back into the team with only one training session in me.
“Fortunately, the match went well and I didn’t have any pain. It’s a good sign for the up-coming home game against Liverpool even though I won’t be 100%.”
The striker is hoping to go out with a flourish before leaving the Barclays Premiership champions to link-up with his national squad.
He added: “The month of December will be key for Chelsea because last year, it was the month when we won the matches which gave us the title.
“I hope I’ll be back on form over the Christmas period and score and win some matches again before going to the African Cup.”
