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Chelsea and Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba has been named the 2006 CAF African Footballer of the Year.
It is the first time Drogba has won the award and, in edging out Samuel Eto'o, he denied Barcelona's Cameroon striker a record fourth-successive award.
Another Chelsea player, Ghana's Michael Essien, finished third.
Drogba, 28, captained his country to the 2006 African Nations Cup final and played at the World Cup finals as well as helping Chelsea win the Premiership.
His success comes four days after he scored twice for the Blues to help them beat Arsenal in the Carling Cup final.
Drogba polled 79 votes in the poll of Africa's 53 national team coaches, ahead of Eto'o with 74 and Essien's 36.
Eto'o had pipped Drogba to the 2005 award by two votes in the closest race in the award's 36-year history, with Essien again third.
But the tables were turned this year and Drogba becomes only the third English-based footballer to win the award after Nwankwo Kanu, then of Arsenal, in 1999 and Senegal's El Hadji Diouf, who was with Liverpool when he took the title in 2002.
Arsenal defenders Emmanuel Eboue and Kolo Toure and Tottenham midfielder Didier Zokora, both Ivory Coast internationals, were named in the 2006 Team of the Year with Chelsea rivals Drogba and Essien the other Premiership stars to feature.
It is the first time Drogba has won the award and, in edging out Samuel Eto'o, he denied Barcelona's Cameroon striker a record fourth-successive award.
Another Chelsea player, Ghana's Michael Essien, finished third.
Drogba, 28, captained his country to the 2006 African Nations Cup final and played at the World Cup finals as well as helping Chelsea win the Premiership.
His success comes four days after he scored twice for the Blues to help them beat Arsenal in the Carling Cup final.
Drogba polled 79 votes in the poll of Africa's 53 national team coaches, ahead of Eto'o with 74 and Essien's 36.
Eto'o had pipped Drogba to the 2005 award by two votes in the closest race in the award's 36-year history, with Essien again third.
But the tables were turned this year and Drogba becomes only the third English-based footballer to win the award after Nwankwo Kanu, then of Arsenal, in 1999 and Senegal's El Hadji Diouf, who was with Liverpool when he took the title in 2002.
Arsenal defenders Emmanuel Eboue and Kolo Toure and Tottenham midfielder Didier Zokora, both Ivory Coast internationals, were named in the 2006 Team of the Year with Chelsea rivals Drogba and Essien the other Premiership stars to feature.
