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My mum calls me Marshal Tito! | The Sun |Sport|Football
DIDIER DROGBA learned about being a leader of men from a young age - when his mother dubbed him Tito.
Clotilde was a huge fan of Yugoslavia's legendary communist leader who stood up to the Soviet Union and chose to go it alone during the Cold War.
It was Marshal Tito's fighting spirit and bravery that she loved and those were the values she wanted to instil in her son when she gave him the nickname.
Clotilde said: "When I was pregnant with Didier there was this general who was the leader of Yugoslavia, Marshal Tito, that I appreciated a lot for his values and perseverance.
"I loved him a lot because of his fighting spirit and that's why we called Didier Tito."
TITO ... Yugoslavian hero
It is the perseverance that Tito showed as leader of Yugoslavia that inspired Drogba, now 31, to stick with football when things were going against him.
Aged 11, after a financial crisis hit the Ivory Coast, Drogba moved to France with uncle Michael Goba, a journeyman pro footballer.
Parents Clotilde and Albert didn't join him until he was 13 - and the first thing they did was ban him from playing football for a year.
That was because Didier was in danger of becoming a tearaway and, when he was forced to repeat a year in school, his parents acted swiftly.
A few years later, aged 17, he spent another year away from football - this time breaking a foot in a training-ground accident when at Levallois.
The Ivory Coast hitman had to wait until he was 25 to make his breakthrough with Marseille before a £24million switch to Chelsea made him a global star.
Now Drogba is revered in his native land and gets mobbed everywhere he goes. It was he who tried to make the population see sense when civil war broke out before the 2006 World Cup. Addressing his nation Drogba said in a televised message: "Ivorians from the north, south, centre and west can live together if we can play together.
"Please, we are the only African country with all that richness. We can't go to war like that. Please put down your arms."
Drogba admitted he was embarrassed because instead of saying "east" he said "centre." He explained: "I didn't write it, I just improvised. I said Ivorians of the north and south and the centre and the west, ha ha... "
Things are different in the Ivory Coast nowadays. He told RTL radio station in France: "It's really special to go back home. But it's not easy for me to go on the streets, it's virtually impossible.
"At the beginning I struggled to accept it but now I can understand a bit more the reaction of the people."
But, unlike his mother's hero Tito, Drogba has no intention of becoming president of the Ivory Coast, although he would probably win by a landslide.
He said: "No, no I don't want to become president. I am happy the way I am. I have the opportunity to be heard. I like this neutral side where I can say what I think and express the sentiments of my team-mates.
"At that moment the players all felt we had to say something. It didn't stop the war but at least it made many people ask some questions."
Drogba has had a few nightmares on the pitch as well, among them the Champions League final against Manchester United in Moscow last year.
He joked: "I also lost the UEFA Cup final with Marseille and the final of the African Nations Cup. I don't know who the black cat is, I hope it's not me.
"It's very difficult at such a high level to get to the final. Sometimes you need a bit of luck to get success."
Drogba, who set up both of Chelsea's goals in the 2-0 win against Liverpool on Sunday, insisted he has no plans to retire any time soon.
As a latecomer to top-level football he wants to prolong his career for many more seasons and still has the hunger for success despite winning many trophies in his five years at Chelsea.
He said: "I don't set limits for myself. I don't know if I was lucky but I started at the highest level very late, at 25 years old. I feel fresh, I only need to run, score goals to feel pleasure.
"I don't know when I will quit or set limits. Perhaps the day I feel tired.
Read more: My mum calls me Marshal Tito! | The Sun |Sport|Football
DIDIER DROGBA learned about being a leader of men from a young age - when his mother dubbed him Tito.
Clotilde was a huge fan of Yugoslavia's legendary communist leader who stood up to the Soviet Union and chose to go it alone during the Cold War.
It was Marshal Tito's fighting spirit and bravery that she loved and those were the values she wanted to instil in her son when she gave him the nickname.
Clotilde said: "When I was pregnant with Didier there was this general who was the leader of Yugoslavia, Marshal Tito, that I appreciated a lot for his values and perseverance.
"I loved him a lot because of his fighting spirit and that's why we called Didier Tito."
It is the perseverance that Tito showed as leader of Yugoslavia that inspired Drogba, now 31, to stick with football when things were going against him.
Aged 11, after a financial crisis hit the Ivory Coast, Drogba moved to France with uncle Michael Goba, a journeyman pro footballer.
Parents Clotilde and Albert didn't join him until he was 13 - and the first thing they did was ban him from playing football for a year.
That was because Didier was in danger of becoming a tearaway and, when he was forced to repeat a year in school, his parents acted swiftly.
A few years later, aged 17, he spent another year away from football - this time breaking a foot in a training-ground accident when at Levallois.
The Ivory Coast hitman had to wait until he was 25 to make his breakthrough with Marseille before a £24million switch to Chelsea made him a global star.
Now Drogba is revered in his native land and gets mobbed everywhere he goes. It was he who tried to make the population see sense when civil war broke out before the 2006 World Cup. Addressing his nation Drogba said in a televised message: "Ivorians from the north, south, centre and west can live together if we can play together.
"Please, we are the only African country with all that richness. We can't go to war like that. Please put down your arms."
Drogba admitted he was embarrassed because instead of saying "east" he said "centre." He explained: "I didn't write it, I just improvised. I said Ivorians of the north and south and the centre and the west, ha ha... "
Things are different in the Ivory Coast nowadays. He told RTL radio station in France: "It's really special to go back home. But it's not easy for me to go on the streets, it's virtually impossible.
"At the beginning I struggled to accept it but now I can understand a bit more the reaction of the people."
But, unlike his mother's hero Tito, Drogba has no intention of becoming president of the Ivory Coast, although he would probably win by a landslide.
He said: "No, no I don't want to become president. I am happy the way I am. I have the opportunity to be heard. I like this neutral side where I can say what I think and express the sentiments of my team-mates.
"At that moment the players all felt we had to say something. It didn't stop the war but at least it made many people ask some questions."
Drogba has had a few nightmares on the pitch as well, among them the Champions League final against Manchester United in Moscow last year.
He joked: "I also lost the UEFA Cup final with Marseille and the final of the African Nations Cup. I don't know who the black cat is, I hope it's not me.
"It's very difficult at such a high level to get to the final. Sometimes you need a bit of luck to get success."
Drogba, who set up both of Chelsea's goals in the 2-0 win against Liverpool on Sunday, insisted he has no plans to retire any time soon.
As a latecomer to top-level football he wants to prolong his career for many more seasons and still has the hunger for success despite winning many trophies in his five years at Chelsea.
He said: "I don't set limits for myself. I don't know if I was lucky but I started at the highest level very late, at 25 years old. I feel fresh, I only need to run, score goals to feel pleasure.
"I don't know when I will quit or set limits. Perhaps the day I feel tired.
Read more: My mum calls me Marshal Tito! | The Sun |Sport|Football
