Didier Drogba has been picked as the greatest African to win the Champions League trophy at Chelsea, according to Goal Africa readers.
Last Saturday, Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy joined the list of African players who have won the European title with the Blues after he helped Thomas Tuchel’s side defeat Manchester City 1-0.
Mendy had a remarkable debut season in the European competition with his solid presence in between the sticks and a record of nine clean sheets in 12 matches.
Despite his defensive contributions that helped Chelsea clinch a second Champions League crown at the Estadio do Dragao, Africans have voted Drogba as the greatest player from the continent to win the title in a Blues shirt.
Going by the poll conducted on Goal Africa’s Twitter page, a total of 742 people voted with Drogba claiming 90.8 per cent of the votes while Mendy had 6.3 per cent and 2.8 is for other African footballers who played for Chelsea.
Drogba played a starring role in the 2012 final against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena with his crucial contributions in front of goal.
He was a constant threat to Bayern’s defence and he forced the game into extra-time after his 88th-minute header cancelled out Thomas Muller's opener.
The Ivory Coast legend rose to the challenge in the penalty shoot-out and he scored the match-winning kick that sealed Chelsea's first Champions League title after the Bavarians missed their last two efforts.
A small percentage of the voters made a case for Nigeria’s John Obi Mikel and Ghana’s Michael Essien who were also part of the 2012 title-winning squad.
Mikel marshalled the midfield for over 120 minutes in the final while Essien was an unused substitute in Munich.
However, Essien and Drogba have both called time on their careers while Mikel is still plying his trade in the Championship with Stoke City which leaves Mendy with a chance of raising his ranks in the future with success at Stamford Bridge.
