Drogba is a Chelsea hero whose return to the club was greeted with universal acclaim and adoration. It will be a thrill to see The Drog back in a blue shirt, tearing through Arsene Wenger's best laid plans as easily as ever, though few are under any illusions that the player Mourinho has resigned is a fraction of the all-time great who departed first time around after scoring the penalty which won Chelsea the Champions League in 2012. That's why it's a surprise to see Drogba not only holding onto his rating from FIFA 14, but that his rating was so high to begin with. To reiterate, Drogba certainly isn't a bad player these days, but you'd be hard pressed to argue he's anywhere near the level of his peak. He ended last season with Galatasaray with a respectable 14 goals in all competitions, a decent total, but has clearly lost some of his legendary strength and pace. There were rumours he was mainly brought back to Chelsea to provide a familiar face in the dressing room following the departures of Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole, perhaps with an eye to eventually moving into a full-time coaching position. His intelligence and experience will certainly be an asset in helping Diego Costa ease into his new club, but he is likely to spend most of his time on the bench this season. A rating of 83 is remarkable for a 36 year old and FIFA players will have to decide whether to sell him, taking advantage of a heightened early financial valuation before the inevitable decline, or keep him around as a very solid backup option. For me, though, a rating of 80 would be closer to his real-life standing.
28-year old English writer with a borderline obsessive passion for films, videogames, Chelsea FC, incomprehensible words and indefensible puns. Follow me on Twitter if you like infrequent outbursts of absolute drivel.
