10 Players You Didn't Know Nearly Signed For AC Milan

4. Didier Drogba

Great players are always going to be linked to great clubs, and more than once. In the case of Ivorian powerhouse Didier Drogba, he was probably linked to AC Milan more than any other club throughout his career, but he never ended up at the San Siro for whatever reason. It seems unfathomable that Chelsea would have allowed their former record signing to leave the club as a 30 year old, but that is exactly what happened halfway through his first spell at Stamford Bridge. With incoming boss Felipe Scolari taking issue with a player he deemed €˜believed was the star in the squad€™, he admitted to asking owner Roman Abramovich to flog the former Marseille goal-poacher and replace him with Adriano. As a result, AC Milan were given the green light to begin negotiations with a player who would one day score the winning spot-kick for the Blues in a Champions League final. Once that failed to materialise, the Italians waited three years to return with a follow-up bid for his services, with Galliani stating that he was €˜in love€™ with the Chelsea striker. Once that advance was rebuffed, however, Milan made one last play for the Ivorian in January 2013, with the 34 year old on the precipice of terminating his contract at Shanghai Shenhua.

''Champions of his calibre are very welcome. Galliani will know if the deal is feasible. I۪m calm, the club is just thinking about what could help us out and what we could do about it. A player like Drogba would certainly improve both the technical level and self-esteem of the team. We۪ll see what the club are able to do.۪۪ - Massimo Allegri, January 2013.