Mata admits Blues have struggled without ‘warrior’ Drogba

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Chelsea star Juan Mata has admitted to a French magazine that the club are struggling to adapt to life after Didier Drogba.

Fernando Torres has found it tough to fill the void left by Drogba’s summer exit from Stamford Bridge.

And Mata told So Foot: “Drogba’s departure was like an electric shock for us. He was a warrior.

“We’ve had to learn to cope without him because for many long years he was Chelsea’s lightning conductor.

“With Drogba we were conditioned to play in a certain way. You gave him the ball and you knew that he would at least force the opponent into a foul.

“In a way we had a tendency to rely on him too much but it was a natural mechanism.

“With Fernando it’s different. His runs aren’t the same. He’s not a funnel for our play like Drogba could be.

“He doesn’t like the holding-it-up role. He prefers finding space and facing the goal.”

But the Blues playmaker added: “For me, Torres is still one of the best strikers in the world.”

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