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Mourinho jumps to Drogba's defense
 Drogba on his back in the penalty box after getting a finger in his right eye LONDON, England -- Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho said Didier Drogba is a "fighter" not a diver after the Ivory Coast star faced renewed criticizm Monday about his on-field conduct. Striker Drogba admitted he handled in the build-up to scoring the second goal in the champions' 2-0 Premiership home win over Manchester City last weekend. Another controversial incident saw Drogba go down dramatically in the City penalty area late in the game after defender Richard Dunne caught him in the eye. However, Mourinho said: "It was a big thing. It was a very strong finger in his eye and it was completely full of blood. Of course he is not blind but it was something serious. The referee saw it as an accident and I accept that." But the Portuguese added: "Sometimes he is a player who does not get what he deserves. Didier is a fighter. I am happy with him and we are happy to have a professional like him. "Players are not just about the skillful ones, the beautiful ones who play for the stands. "It is very important to have players who fight for the team, work for the team, attack and defend," Mourinho also told Monday's London Evening Standard. "He is the kind of player I would say 'with you I could go to every war'. He is a very important player for us." The 28-year-old Drogba also received the backing of Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who said: "He is not an unfair player, basically. "He makes sometimes more of it, like many strikers do as well, but sometimes he is maybe pushed or pulled when nobody sees it - defenders cheat on the strikers as well you know." Drogba, 28, infuriated West Bromwich manager Bryan Robson, who accused him of trying to get Jonathan Greening sent-off after exaggerating the player's challenge during Chelsea's league visit earlier this month. And Gordon Taylor, chief executive of the English Professional Footballers' Association, said Monday: "The lad is one of the best strikers to come out of Africa. He is a top, talented player and it diminishes the quality of his game by what he is doing." Taylor also told Sky Sports that managers had a key role to play in improving on-field conduct. "I hope we can have managers who will look to see what is happening with their own players rather than complain about opposition players and not be blind when it happens with their own - that is going to be the biggest influence. "But it is down to the individuals. They know what they are doing and they have got to live with themselves. "They are going to be regarded as much better players if they remove that aspect from the game." 
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