Galatasaray

David Moyes could find himself back in a job in time for the 2014-15 campaign after it came to light that the former Everton and Manchester United manager is to hold talks with Galatasaray.

Eurosport cites sources claiming that the Turkish Super Lig giants are looking to the Scot as a prime contender for the vacant position at their helm:

The Huffington Post's Samuel Luckhurst supports these claims with images of Moyes in Istanbul, while the Daily Mail's Matt Lawton illustrates just how close he is to re-entering the management world:

The Telegraph also has information on the meeting, tweeting the following:

Galatasaray are currently without a manager following Roberto Mancini's departure from the club by mutual consent, as reported by Sky Sports earlier this month.

Moyes was axed from his role as United boss after 10 months in charge at Old Trafford, failing to live up to his tag as "The Chosen One," but Paul Handler of the Manchester Evening News says that offers have been rife.

Galatasaray have a firm bond with British managers, as Luckhurst points out:

Handler quotes Moyes after he spoke on his employment prospects earlier in June, where he gave an idea of just what he's expecting his new project to offer:

I have had a couple of opportunities to go back in and chosen to do do anything just now. I am going to look for what I feel is the right opportunity. I got my real first taste of the Champions League this year and I thought I showed I can manage at that level. I would like somewhere that would give me a chance of being in the Champions League or a club that has ambitions of being in the Champions League.

It could be at home or abroad. I have always liked the thought of broadening my horizons and learning a bit more and at the moment I am quite comfortable watching and learning. I will go away and learn and look again to see what is happening.

Europe was at times the one consistently bright spot in Manchester United's dismal 2013-14 season under Moyes, where they went unbeaten throughout their Champions League group campaign and pulled off a remarkable comeback in their round of 16 tie opposite Olympiakos.

The journey eventually came to its end at the hands of then reigning champions Bayern Munich, but not before United held a good account of their talents in a 1-1 first-leg draw.

Moyes' time at Old Trafford has become the butt of many a joke, but one could argue that the odds were so firmly stacked against him that few managers might have fared better under the same circumstances.

A move to Turkey would give the 51-year-old a very enticing prospect in a club that has ample resources and the chance to deliver in the European forum once again.

Gala finished second to Fenerbahce in the Turkish top flight last season and will be hoping to rise back to the summit following Mancini's exit.

Italian manager Roberto Mancini has decided to leave Turkish side Galatasaray after just a single season, according to a statement made on the team's official website (in Turkish).

Sky Sports shared the official translation of the statement:

Our relationship with coach Roberto Mancini and his contract of employment, which was signed on October 1, 2013, has been terminated by mutual agreement.

We wholeheartedly thank (Mancini) for his success and achievements and wish him happiness in his next mission.

Eurosport were one of the first outlets to break the news:

Tancredi Palmeri of beIN Sports shared the manager's statement following the news:

According to The Guardian, Mancini and the club mutually agreed to part ways following Galatasaray's unsuccessful campaign in the Turkish Super Lig, finishing second behind league champions Fenerbahce.

Goal's Enis Koylu didn't expect both parties to go their separate ways this soon, though he couldn't deny Turkey's most storied club had taken a step back under the guidance of the Italian manager:

Palmeri claimed the decision had been made a while ago, but the financial details of the contract kept both parties from breaking the news:

The manager himself told La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Football Italia) he planned on staying with Galatasaray just two days ago, having signed a three-year contract at the start of the 2013-14 season. Mancini confirmed he missed his native country and its football, but that wasn't enough to make him reconsider his future in Turkey:

I miss Italy, not only in affection but also for the football.

But I will be clear—I am staying at Galatasaray. I have two years on my contract and I am fine. We will play in the Champions League, we will resume in mid-July.

Mancini signed with the Turkish outfit following a stint with Premier League champions Manchester City, and pundits believed the manager chose Galatasaray in order to help rebuild his reputation.

The Guardian is already linking the experienced Mancini with a return to his native Italy, as Lazio struggled through much of the 2013-14 season with Edy Reja at the helm.

Boylesports doesn't rule out a return to England either:

Southampton lost Mauricio Pochettino to Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur and are in the market for a veteran manager with Premier League experience.

Mancini could be a perfect fit.

Mancini was wildly successful as manager of Internazionale earlier in his career, but struggled to control the star-studded team he was tasked with guiding in Manchester. The presence of veteran stars Wesley Sneijder and Didier Drogba seemed to work against him in Istanbul as well, and failure to deliver the Turkish title likely sealed the manager's fate.

The Italian has always thrived in the role of underdog, never more than when he was tasked with leading Inter against the mighty Juventus of the pre-Calciopoli era. At Southampton, Mancini would find a young squad oozing with talent, a situation perhaps better suited for his particular skill set as a manager.

Didier Drogba appeared to confirm that he was leaving Galatasaray and Turkey after his final game of the season this weekend—but internet rumours that he had made a hugely generous gift to the families of those affected by the Turkish mining disaster appeared wide of the mark.

As per the BBC, 301 workers died in the town of Soma in a tragedy that has become worldwide news. At the time of writing, 25 people have been arrested over the deaths.

Ivory Coast international Drogba seemingly made a €1 million donation as part of Galatasaray's final game of the season, according to Goal:

The Istanbul giants' players wore helmets ahead of their league game against Kayseri Erciyesspor at the weekend to show their support and the Cote d'Ivoire international has gone one step further in his role as U.N. ambassador.

"I am a U.N. ambassador of goodwill and I will do all that I can to help the people in Soma," Drogba told reporters.

"But I don’t want anyone to use my name. I’m not someone who will promote himself in such issues. I don’t need this sort of a self-promotion."

However, the striker subsequently took to Instagram to deny the rumours and insist that any philanthropy for the tragedy in Turkey would be kept private:

His message reads:

didierdrogba: Dear Fans, dear brothers, dear sisters, since day one of my arrival thanks to you all, i felt at home here in Turkey. Sharing, seeing, feeling the passion, sincerety and warm hospitality of My Turkish people is trully unforgetable. Being a human helping humanity and peace, i feel obliged to make clarity on the latest false news circulating around social media on donating into the TRAGEDY in SOMA. The tragedy that happended in SOMA hurt the hearth of all of us. Kindly note my support at my own capacity and thru my foundation is and will always continue. It is NOT in my nature to allow false statements, i always preffer to remain descrete when i do such duty. Like my Turkish brothers say. Soz gumus ise, sukut Altindir. If words are Silver , Silence is Gold. #staystrongturkey

Drogba is set to play at this year's World Cup, but thereafter he is a free agent in the summer.

[Goal]

Wednesday will be the rehearsal, if you like, for Didier Drogba. Emotions will inevitably be stirred when the Chelsea legend meets his old club in the Champions League, wearing the red and yellow of Galatasaray.

The Turkish SuperLig champions’ Turk Telekom Arena may be amongst the most cacophonous sports venues on the planet (see this Bleacher Report guide by Karla Villegas Gama), but it is the second leg that will stir most appetites.

Jose Mourinho’s return to Stamford Bridge for the first Premier League game of the season against Hull City was really something. Drogba’s, on March 18, promises to be even more spectacular.  

Drogba was the man voted Chelsea’s greatest-ever player by their fans in October 2012, as noted here by the Mirror’s Mike Walters.

The stats are impressive enough, with his 157 goals for the Blues in eight seasons helping to yield three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, two League Cups and the Champions League title he secured with the penalty shoot-out winner against Bayern Munich—his last kick of a ball for Chelsea.

That fateful kick in Munich may represent the pinnacle, as well as the denouement, of his time at Stamford Bridge, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg in terms of his achievements. There was always something more about Drogba than just the goals. It was his demeanour, his personality, his leadership.

It has been the same everywhere he’s been.

The impression that Drogba left in just a single season at Olympique de Marseille is such that his shirt hangs in the Basilique du Sacre-Coeur, the magnificent Roman-Byzantine church that towers above central Marseille. In the tributes corner of the cathedral, Drogba’s OM No. 11 top is framed next to the military tunic of General Joseph de Goislard de Monsabert, who led the resistance forces which finally freed the city of Marseille from Nazi occupation in 1944.

It is often forgotten that he was initially reluctant to join Chelsea. "I remember when he got the phone call," his former Marseille teammate Habib Beye told me in 2010. "He didn't want to go."

Drogba scored just 22 Premier League goals in his first two seasons at the club combined. That he stuck with it, and forged such a positive reputation at the club, is testament to his persistence and fortitude.

Galatasaray fans quickly took him to their hearts. He was, of course, a global superstar already, but the love for the Ivorian in the red-yellow half of Istanbul has been enduring, simply because his commitment has been plain to see.

When Cimbom celebrated their SuperLig title after the final home game of last season against Trabzonspor, Drogba was as involved in the festivities as anyone. This wasn’t a tourist simply topping up his pension pot. You’d have thought he’d been there for four years, rather than just four months.

Drogba is the X-factor that gives Galatasaray, who have been inconsistent this season, hope ahead of an uphill task against Chelsea. He has moved mountains on and off the pitch before.

There’s an extraordinary moment in the 2007 documentary on Drogba, L’Incroyable Destin (in French). The Ivory Coast players are celebrating their qualification for the 2006 World Cup (at 1:44), when Drogba hushes them and begins to address the camera, broaching the subject of the civil war that then ravaged the country.

Fellow Ivorians, from north to south and east to west. We’ve shown you today that all the population of the Ivory Coast can live together, and play together for the same aim. Today, we’re on our knees to ask you. Please, put down your weapons. Organise elections, and everything will be better.

When the Treaty of Ouagadougou was signed in March 2007, to pave the way to the country’s reunification, Drogba was invited to the ceremony.

In this context, it’s easy to see why Drogba was calm as he faced Manuel Neuer that night in Munich, as Blue hearts beat hard inside the Allianz Arena and all around the world.

It also tells us that Drogba will have the nerve to take the game to Chelsea this Wednesday and in the second leg, whatever the strength of his history with the club and Mourinho.

Didier Drogba used Friday's Galatasaray match to pay his own tribute to Nelson Mandela, but his T-shirt gesture is under investigation by the Turkish Football Federation.

Drogba, 35, lifted his Galatasaray shirt to reveal a "Thank You Madiba" message, while his teammate, former Arsenal defender Emmanuel Eboue, also made a similar tribute.

For the two African players, it was a natural way to pay their respects to one of recent history's most influential and unifying figures—however, it has landed them in trouble in Turkey.

As Turkish news source Hurriyet Daily News explains, the next step is for the pair to explain themselves before a committee:

The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) justified the decision by arguing that the players wore the t-shirts in the match against Elazığspor without receiving permission beforehand. Both players displayed the t-shirts after the conclusion of the game, which the Lions won 2-0.

Drogba has responded by posting a picture montage on Instagram including a photo of his own meeting with the former South Africa president.

He adds that he would do it again:

I'd be very interested to see your comments on this...but I'm sorry if I had to I would do it again and again.Nor because of political beliefs but because this man inspired me,a country, a continent, the world!!!!! Thanks again Madiba

He may find that there is plenty of support for that point of view from the football community and the wider world.

After all, Drogba has previously appeared in Time's list of the 100 most influential people in the world, in no small part because of his charity work and role in Africa. Per the The Telegraph, some have even credited him has having helped stop his homeland, the Ivory Coast, from descending into civil war.

The world now awaits the Turkish Football Federation's final verdict on the tributes.