Didier Drogba Return: Former Chelsea Star's Greatest Moments and Key Stats

Didier Drogba returns to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening for the first time since ending his eight-year reign as a Chelsea player in June 2012.

The Galatasaray striker will seek to end the Champions League run of his former club, whom he now faces in the second leg of the two sides' round of 16 collision, the score tied at one goal apiece following the first encounter.

According to Jose Mourinho, Drogba's time at the club may not be done, either, with SNTV (h/t The Guardian) showing the Chelsea helmsman as saying a return is certainly on the cards.

Celebrated as arguably the best player ever to pull on the blue of the West London outfit, Drogba boasts a vast collection of memorable moments from his time as a Chelsea player, the finest of which we've compiled ahead, along with a summary of his biggest Chelsea achievements.

2006-07 FA Cup Final-Winning Goal

Chelsea's biggest rival for domestic dominance throughout "the Drogba years" was Manchester United, and it was in May 2007 that the titans put on one of their less classic clashes.

That year's FA Cup final may not have been the entertaining extravaganza that many were hoping for, but if nothing else, it served in validating the Ivorian's knack for turning up on the biggest of stages, this time in the first match ever played at the new Wembley.

Edwin van der Sar went 116 minutes before Drogba finally pierced his net, giving the Blues a 1-0 win to seal a domestic double alongside that year's League Cup, with him as the hero of the hour.

	Premier League	FA Cup	League Cup	Champions League	FA Community Shield	Premier League Golden Boot	PFA Team of the Year
2004-05	Yes		Yes
2005-06	Yes				Yes
2006-07		Yes	Yes			Yes	Yes
2007-08
2008-09		Yes
2009-10	Yes	Yes			Yes	Yes	Yes
2010-11
2011-12		Yes		Yes

Jose Mourinho's First Trophy As Blues Boss

Jose Mourinho's first spell as Chelsea manager got off to a booming start, with the Portuguese winning both the Premier League and League Cup titles in 2004-05.

However, that success may never have come along were it not for the contributions of Drogba, with the League Cup of particular significance for the striker in terms of snapshot brilliance.

That season, Chelsea were 2-1 down against Liverpool in the tournament's final, with just 13 minutes left of added time. However, Drogba would strike in the 107th before Mateja Kezman pitched in with a third, decisive score.

Seven months after arriving in England, Drogba had his first piece of major silverware under his belt, and as we would go on to realise, much bigger feats awaited.

Premier League Appearances	Premier League Goals	Total Appearances	Total Goals
226	100	342	157

2011-12 Champions League Hero

Never one to shy away from the drama, Drogba signed off his Chelsea career with the biggest of bangs, playing a most pivotal role in the comeback victory over Bayern Munich in the 2011-12 Champions League final.

All seemed lost when Thomas Muller waited until the 83rd minute to strike home the Allianz Arena opener, but Chelsea's stalwart had one final contribution to the club's tapestry, grabbing an 88th-minute equaliser to force extra time.

This score helped advance a quite unique record of Drogba's as detailed by OptaJean:

As if written in the stars, the soon-to-be out-of contract hitman struck Chelsea's fourth, decisive spot kick in the ensuing penalty shootout, not long after heading to Shanghai Shenhua for the first venture of his post-Chelsea days.

Voted Greatest Chelsea Player Ever

There remains some debate as to who is truly the best player ever to line up in Chelsea blue, but in October 2012, the club opened the forum to the most honest resource pool available—the people—in making their selection.

As The Mirror's Mike Walters reported at the time, Drogba came out on top of the poll, which took into account the votes of some 20,000 fans.

The fans weren't the only ones who appreciated his presence, either, as The Telegraph's Henry Winter quotes John Terry's tribute:

Regardless of where one might fall on this debate, Drogba has the most official recognition of the award available to date, and after all the trophies, goals and individual feats, one can understand why.