Frank Lampard hails "gentleman" Didier Drogba

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has hailed outgoing Blues striker Didier Drogba as a "great, great player".

Drogba, 34, announced his intention to leave the club on Tuesday, and Lampard believes that the Ivorian will be remembered as one of the best.

"He will leave a massive hole at the club, but I'm not disappointed he's chosen to leave. I don't mean that in a bad way, but I love him and he deserves to go out on a massive finish, like he has done," he told talkSPORT.

"It's been a massive pleasure to play with him and I hope he makes the right choice. I'm sure he will. He's a gentleman as a fella and a great, great player. People talk about Henry, Rooney, Bergkamp and all the greats and I didn't see Didier get too many mentions for the best Premier League team of the last 20 years.

"Maybe people like to make a fuss about the other side of things, but he's the best striker I've played with. His all-round game is immense and he should be right up there with the Henrys and whoever."

Drogba is expected to join Chinese outfit Shanghai Shenhua.