'He was an example for me': Osimhen names Drogba as his idol growing up

Victor Osimhen has spoken about his love for Didier Drogba and revealed how much of an influence the Ivorian had on him growing up.

“I grew up watching Didier Drogba play, he was an example for me,” Victor Osimhen said on the Napoli YouTube channel. “One day I was training and a man called me asking if I knew who I play like. He told me to go to YouTube and see Didier Drogba.

“There I fell in love with his way of playing and the kind of person he is. From that moment, seeing Drogba play had a major impact on my game and helped me a lot.”

While talking about scoring for Lille against Chelsea in the Champions League, Osimhen had this to say:

"My childhood idol is Didier Drogba. When I scored against Chelsea. The feeling because I know a lot of my friends that are Chelsea fans and before the game they messaged that they don't care if Chelsea beat Lille 5-1 or 5-2 as long as I score.

"They really wanted me to actualize my dream and I'm really happy. It's one of the best moments of my career."

He also revealed that he had a conversation after Drogba complemented him on social media:

“It’s amazing when you wake up or go on social media, see an encouraging message from someone you grew up admiring like Drogba. It’s a surprise and of course a big motivation for me. I have a smile on my face, because we spoke at length, I love what he did, I appreciate his confidence in me. I chose my idol very well and I’m happy about this too!”