The former Chelsea star has made the move
to Turkey from Shanghai Shenhua after
months of speculation linking him with a move
away from the Chinese Super League
28 Jan 2013 18:17:00
Galatasaray have
announced the signing of
Didier Drogba from
Shanghai Shenhua on a
one-and-a-half-year
contract.
The Chelsea legend has
long been linked with a
return to Europe after
leaving Stamford Bridge for China in the
summer, and, despite rumours of interest from
Italy, the Turkish champions have won the race
for his signature.
"Big clubs can reach for higher targets with
bigger goals," the club's president Unal Aysal
commented on the deal.
"Drogba said that he was very happy to play for
a big club like Galatasaray in the future. Drogba
met our coach and decided to come to
Galatasaray."
On Twitter, Drogba told his PR company: "The
opportunity to play for this great club was an
offer that I could not turn down.
"I am looking forward to playing in the
Champions League again, against the best clubs
in Europe."
The Cote d'Ivoire icon will earn €2 million for
the remainder of the 2012-13 season, and €4m
for the duration of the 2013-14 campaign, with
an additional bonus of €15,000 for each match
he plays.
Both AC Milan and Juventus had been closely
linked with a January move for Drogba, but Gala
announced yesterday that they had opened talks
with the player.
He will link up with his new team-mates once
Cote d'Ivoire's involvement at the Africa Cup of
Nations ends.
Drogba is the second star name to move to the
Turk Telekom Arena this January, with Wesley
Sneijder making the switch from Inter to
Istanbul last week.
Source http://m.goal.com/x/en-gb/news/3708092