Boost for Marseille as Drogba wins fitness battle to play in UEFA Cup final
Drogba, who has 11 goals in Europe this season, faced a fitness battle after sustaining a hip injury in a French League match against Monaco nine days ago. Despite the player raising doubts about his own fitness, Marseille coach Jose Anigo yesterday said Drogba would play in the Ullevi Stadium.
Anigo said: “Didier is 100% fit and he will be playing in the final. It took us some time to get him back on his feet but now everything is fine.
“After the Monaco match he could hardly move or dress and we feared the worst but the scans revealed no bone problems.”
The Ivory Coast international hammered the brace which sunk Newcastle’s hopes in the last four and is Marseille’s major weapon in their quest to win their first European title since the 1993 Champions League final.
Anigo added: “Didier is the perfect match between Jean-Pierre Papin and George Weah. He has Papin’s sense and Weah’s power and if he can keep improving he can be among the best.”
Valencia captain David Albelda believes experience and humility may provide the key to victory against Marseille. “Valencia have grown and developed as a team over recent years,” Albelda said yesterday. “The team has remained more or less the same, but it is now better prepared and more experienced.
“The key to our success is hard work and humility. We don’t think we are superior to anyone else but we are determined to continue improving.”
Valencia, crowned Primera Liga champions last week for the second time in three seasons, reached the Champions League final in 2000 and 2001 but have not won a European trophy since the 1980 Cup Winners’ Cup. “You can’t guarantee that things will go according to plan because it is a final, a one-off game,” said Albelda. “But it is an historic year for Valencia and we are determined to do our best to win another trophy.”
Defender Carlos Marchena insisted his side would not rest on their laurels after wrapping up the Spanish league title with games two to spare. “The team is 100% focused,” he said. “Although we have had a good season so far we know we are in a final and are certainly not be relaxed about it.”
Albelda said Valencia had no plans to change their usual defensive tactics to cope with Drogba, whose goals have fired the French side into their first European final since 1999.
“We are talking about a great player,” the defensive midfielder said. “But in the Spanish league we have to cope with great players week in and week out and we don’t use any special man-marking or other plans to stop them so we won’t do it with Drogba either. Instead we will be relying on the whole team to do its work.”
Valencia coach Rafa Benitez, who will be in charge for his first European final, said he hoped to see his side maintain their recent form.
“I don’t see any reason why we should change our plans for this match, but there are no fixed rules as to how games like this develop so we will have to be flexible in our approach,” he said.
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