Career
Guingamp
Drogba arrived in Brittany during the 2001-02 season. In a Guingamp team fighting to stay in the top flight, he got off to a very promising start. From the moment he arrived, manager Guy Lacombe, who had insisted that his chairman, Mr Le Graët, buy Drogba, wanted to give him every chance and named him in the starting line-up for a vital trip to Metz. So it was at the Saint-Symphorien stadium that Didier first ran out onto a Ligue 1 pitch. He was to make an immediate impact, scoring once and playing a vital role in Guingamp’s first away win of the season. The boy from Abidjan was already seen as a saviour in Guingamp’s Côtes-d’Armor region.
A magical match against Olympique Lyonnais
However the rest of the season was not to be quite such a fairy tale. Guingamp managed to avoid relegation, but Didier did not play much; the flamboyant start contrasted with subsequent matches. He finished the year with 11 appearances and three goals in the Championnat. Although the club had attained its goal, Tito was not happy with his performances and the coaching staff lacked confidence in him. Despite this, he wanted to stay in Brittany and prove to the manager that he was worthy of a place in Ligue 1 football.
This strength of character was rewarded. He exploded onto the scene from the very first match of the next season. In the Championnat curtain-raiser Didier started on the bench against Lyon. With Guingamp trailing the reigning champions 3-1, Guy Lacombe decided to bring him on with twenty minutes left to play. Guingamp managed to pull back the deficit, scoring twice in the dying seconds. Drogba got the equalising goal and Guingamp’s Roudourou stadium exploded with joy. This time nothing was going to stop Didier’s career really taking off.
Didier signs for Marseille, the club of his dreams
Guingamp ended the season seventh in the Championnat, its best ever position, and Didier, who hit 17 goals in 34 matches in Ligue 1, was attracting attention. The siren call of mighty Olympique de Marseille attracted him. Having been signed by Guingamp for 150,000 euros in January 2002, Didier cost Marseille 6 million euros in July 2003. In just eighteen months, he had gone from being a substitute in Ligue 2 to the centre forward of one of France’s most famous clubs. Didier left Brittany for the club of his dreams in Marseille. His upward path continued.
