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Azpilicueta Reveals Drogba, Hazard and Costa Were His Toughest Opponents
Former Chelsea captain César Azpilicueta has revealed the three toughest opponents he ever faced in his career, and one of them is a name Chelsea fans know very well—Didier Drogba.
The Spanish defender recalled his battles with Hazard back when he played for Marseille in Ligue 1 and the Belgian was lighting up the French league with Lille. He also had to go up against Drogba when the Ivorian striker joined Turkish club Galatasaray, and he faced Costa during the Spaniard’s time at Atlético Madrid.
“Well, the first name that comes to mind is Eden Hazard because we were teammates for so many years,” Azpilicueta said. “But before that, when I was at Marseille and he was at Lille, I played against him, and he was already an incredible player.”
On Drogba, he said, “I also played against Didier when he was at Galatasaray and I was at Chelsea. He was a tough striker, so strong and difficult to stop.”
His final pick was Costa, saying, “I faced Diego Costa when he was at Atlético Madrid. He was aggressive, relentless, and always looking to cause problems for defenders.”
Chelsea player Enzo Fernández is in discussions to join Manchester City. This information was revealed by Fabrizio Romano, who shared that the two clubs are discussing a potential deal.
He wrote: “Enzo Fernández has a verbal agreement with Manchester City on personal terms.
“Deal depends on club-to-club decision, as #MCFC have not sent an official bid yet, but contacts will take place soon; decision on price is up to Chelsea.
“Enzo could be out again this weekend.”
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca mentions his captains for the team. He mentions Rúben Dias and Erling Haaland.
He shared “We have experienced players. For sure, we have leaders. Now we need to wait four or five more days until the transfer window closes to see if we can add one or two more captains to Ruben [Dias] and Erling , who at the moment are the two captains.”
Maresca confirmed the pair as part of his leadership group ahead of the 2026/27 season, with two more captains expected to be selected after the transfer window closes.
Chelsea manager speaks on the team and shares thoughts on considering a change in goalkeepers, giving another goalkeeper, Mike Penders, a chance.
“Penders is part of the squad, so he has an opportunity. We will decide and then I am giving the team tomorrow to the players, so I prefer to respect that they know first.”
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