Didier Drogba could face a Football Association investigation into claims he deliberately got booked in order to manage the timing of his suspensions. The FA have noted the Chelsea striker's comments from his forthcoming autobiography, which were printed in the News World on Sunday, with interest.
However, no action will be taken by the authorities until the book is published in England in July. An FA spokesman said: "We would like to wait to see the comments in their full context before deciding on any further action." The potential controversy surrounds the Ivorian's claim that he used to collude with former Blues manager Jose Mourinho and get himself yellow-carded at convenient times.
By doing so, the pair were able to ensure that the former Marseille frontman sat out pre-selected matches under the cumulative bookings system. "Mourinho calculated everything - he looked at the match programme and analysed the cards each of his lads had received," Drogba said in his book.
"He sometimes whispered to me, 'It would be good for you to get a yellow card today. You would miss such-and-such a match. I will give you four free days.'
"No problem. I used to do as he said. "That allowed me to pay myself a little trip to Dubai. It was a modern way of treating work and the individual."