5 Chelsea players and transfer targets who may be their new Didier Drogba

Didier Drogba’s legacy at Chelsea is legendary.

The Ivorian striker was the beating heart of the Blues’ golden age, a giant who combined strength, skill and unparalleled ability to achieve the most important moments, most notably in the 2012 Champions League final, where he was underperformed, which gave the Blues its first trophy.

Chelsea still aspires to be the successor to be able to replicate its influence on the court and on the court.

The club saw the forward’s revolving door in the post-Drogba era, and while some like Diego Costa enjoy a solid career at Stamford Bridge, no one could fully step into the legendary forward’s shoes.

From young prodigy who has made their mark in West London to established European stars, we looked at five players and we thought it was possible to pick up Drogba’s cloak at Stamford Bridge.

1

Nicholas Jackson

Chelsea

Nicolas Jackson, signed from Villarreal in the summer of 2023, has a lot in common with Drogba. His physical presence and work rate reflect Drogba’s, and his ability to link dramas is perhaps better than Ivorian’s. His pace and clever moves are also great.

However, his end is his completion compared to Drogba. Although he has made progress this semester under Enzo Maresca, he still wasted too many opportunities, often requiring two or three clear opportunities to get his name in the scoring slice.

Jackson has scored 23 Premier League goals since moving to Chelsea, but he has missed 39 big opportunities in his short blue career so far, which is exactly three times as much as Drogba missed because it’s Premier League record.

That being said, Jackson is still only 23 years old and his shooting percentage is high, and his impressive performance at his peak shows that he has the ability to lead the game at Stamford Bridge. However, consistency and improved display before the goal will determine whether he reaches Drogba’s height.

2

Shim Mheuka

Chelsea

Shim Mheuka has quickly moved to Chelsea Academy rankings since joining the club from Brighton & Hove Albion in 2022.

In the 2023/24 season, despite still being a boy, he regularly competed in the Under-18 matches, winning an impressive 12 goals in 20 matches in all matches, including a memorable outing against Manchester United’s Stamford Bridge in the 18-year-old Premier League National Finals.

Last summer, Mheuka also played a key role for England in the European Under-17 Championship, scoring at the opening ceremony with Spain. Recently, he marked his Under 19 style against France and the Netherlands.

Now 17 years old, Mheuka’s strong framework, smart sports and excellent finishing ability – all qualities Drogba showed – has caught Maresca’s attention, with the Italian who made his first-team debut in December in the conference league.

There is no doubt that he has a bright future in West London, and given that he was 26 when Drogba signed Chelsea, Mheuka had enough time to prove that he had enough growth to develop into a Drogba-style talent.

3

Liam Delap

Ipswich Town

Liam Delap has been one of the best strikers in the Premier League this season. Large, strong, and deadly targeted, the forward scored 10 goals in the top flight of the newly promoted Ipswich Town, which proved to be a real few goals for some of the best defenders on top flights.

Maresca has moved to Chelsea with Chelsea, who coached him as a young man in his youth at Manchester City, a big admirer.

“Liam is a great player and his age,” Maresca said in a 2-0 win at Chelsea in December. “I think we spent a year together and he scored 22 to 24 goals. He is a very good striker.

He added: “England has a lot of good players, a lot of good shooters.” “He is trying to play football, understand the game and can score goals. I think he can be a big player in England.” Maybe Chelsea is also?

4

Victor Osimhen

Galatasaray/Napoli

Victor Osimhen is perhaps the closest player to Drogba right now in terms of style and influence.

The Nigerian striker’s score record in Naples is certainly reminiscent of Drogba, not to mention continuing his goal on Galatasaray’s shirt, something Ivorian did between Chelsea spells.

Osimhen approached Chelsea in the summer, but the deal failed before transferring to Istanbul’s loan.

There, he once again showed why he was one of the deadliest strikers in world football, scoring 20 goals in 27 games, including two players in the Europa League against Tottenham Hotspur, which has made him a Chelsea hero.

5

Benjamin Sesco

RB Leipzig

RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko is one of Europe’s most exciting young strikers, often compared with Erling Haaland due to his physical attributes and game style. Quite crucially, he also mentioned him in the same breath as Chelsea Star Drogba.

The Slovenian’s forward is 4-foot-4 and he is a real defender for the defender when the ball passes through the box. Not only is he big, but he is also the wonderful head of the ball. The 21-year-old has scored seven leading goals since moving to Leipzig in 2023.

Meanwhile, Drogba found noggin’s net 17 times in the Premier League.

Like Drogba, Sesko was able to score from long distances, which he showed during a stunning strike against Werder Bremen in January, where he unleashed a strong drive that nearly broke the Nets from 25 yards.

It is reported that moving to Stamford Bridge on Chelsea’s radar could give him a chance to join Chelsea’s next dominant striker, which could potentially follow in Drogba’s footsteps.