Manchester United defender Eric Bailly has revealed that former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba advised him to join Jose Mourinho at Old Trafford.
Speaking in an interview with The Times, the former Villarreal star revealed the process behind his decision to choose United over Manchester City.
Mourinho made him his first signing after taking charge of the Red Devils, and the 22-year-old has revealed a conversation with Drogba helped him make his mind up before the Portuguese tactician himself sealed the deal.
“I signed for United because I like Mourinho, it’s as simple as that. I wanted to play for someone who works very hard.
“I didn’t speak to Pep Guardiola but the second [assistant] manager called me and Mourinho called me as well. He said come and play for me. I prefer Mourinho in part because of Didier Drogba, who Mourinho has worked with.
“I know Didier from the Ivory Coast, he is a friend, and he spoke to me and told me, ‘Jose did this for me, Jose did that for me’.
“Yaya also called me and said that I should come to City but once Jose spoke to me and Didier gave me advice, I knew straight away that I wanted to play for him.”
Mourinho will now be hoping that the faith that he has placed in the Ivorian is repaid, as Bailly will form a crucial part of United’s progress in the coming years.
While he may well still opt to splash out in the summer transfer market on another defender, his influence and ability to attract players is evident as he also added Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibrahimovic to his squad ahead of his first campaign in charge.