AFCON 2025: Chelsea legend Drogba sends heartfelt support to 2023 hero snubbed by Ivory Coast

Chelsea legend Didier Drogba has delivered a powerful message of support to Nicolas Pepe after the Villarreal winger was controversially left out of the Ivory Coast's AFCON 2025 squad, a decision that followed a torrent of racist abuse directed at the 2023 tournament hero.

Pepe, a key player in the Ivory Coast's victorious 2023 AFCON campaign, was excluded from coach Émerse Faé's 28-man squad for the upcoming tournament. Despite being a regular starter for La Liga side Villarreal CF, the 29-year-old found himself on the outside looking in.

Faé addressed the decision publicly, stating it wasn't purely a "sporting sanction" but also involved considerations of "matters off the pitch", a reference to recent controversy surrounding the forward.

The exclusion follows a highly publicised vlog-style video featuring Pépé, in which he made ironic comments about the Moroccan national team and expressed strong views on dual-national players.

What was later characterised as "dressing-room banter" by the former Arsenal star triggered an immediate and vicious backlash.

The video unleashed a wave of racist attacks and hateful comments directed at Pépé across social media platforms, with the intensity of the abuse shocking observers and raising serious questions about player welfare and online accountability.

Amid the storm of controversy and racism, the Ivory Coast's greatest footballing export stepped forward. Didier Drogba, the Chelsea icon and national hero, broke his silence with a brief but deeply emotional message on X (formerly Twitter).

"X asked me what's new, I wanted to write nothing new. Stay strong, son," Drogba wrote.

The symbolic gesture from the country's most celebrated player represents far more than simple encouragement.

It's a clear act of solidarity during a period of intense difficulty, and an implicit condemnation of the racism Pépé has endured.

What began as a squad selection controversy has evolved into a broader narrative about player treatment, racism in football, and the responsibilities of footballing authorities to protect their players from abuse.

Pépé's omission from the AFCON 2025 squad represents a painful fall from grace for a player who helped deliver the nation's greatest recent footballing triumph.

The decision to exclude him while he faces racist abuse has raised uncomfortable questions about whether sporting authorities are doing enough to stand by their players in moments of crisis.

However, with AFCON days away, Drogba's intervention ensures that the conversation around Pépé's absence will be remembered not just as a tactical decision but as a test of values and a reminder that football's biggest voices still have the power to stand up for what's right.