Chelsea's Didier Drogba said he lost his passion for football last summer after the death of his grandmother. The 30-year-old Ivory Coast striker has lost his place to Nicolas Anelka in Chelsea's starting line-up after a difficult year, marred by injuries and suspensions.
He told France Football magazine he had felt the need for a break last summer while recovering from a knee injury. "The hardest thing I had to endure this year was not football related. The death of my grandmother in June completely struck me down more than anything else," Drogba said in the interview published on Tuesday.
"I was very very close to her and it really made me suffer. This made me ask a few questions to myself. I wondered what I was running after. I said to myself that it was pretty useless to run after results, stats or rewards," he added.