Carvalho arrived at Chelsea in 2004, following Mourinho to Stamford Bridge after they won the Champions League at Porto together, a year after claiming the UEFA Cup trophy. In a six-year spell with the Blues, he won three Premier League titles, Four FA Cups and two League Cups before heading to Real Madrid in 2011.
In an interview with A Bola Carvalho reflected on his days in London and was asked for the best centre-back he played alongside in his illustrious career, naming club legend and former captain Terry.
“When I arrived, he grew up in England. And he was someone I admired for his spirit,” he said. “He was a leader, a bit like Jorge Costa or Fernando Couto. A warrior on the field, with great quality.”
If Terry was the wall, Drogba was the battering ram who demolished opposition defences. Carvalho first encountered him as an opponent with Porto against Marseille and admitted he was stunned.
“What surprised me most was Drogba. I played against [Ruud] van Nistelrooy, who had a lot of talent and quality, but Drogba was unknown when I was at Porto and we played against Marseille. His strength, explosiveness, and power were incredible. It was difficult to stop him. Later, as teammates, we became great friends. We played for six years at Chelsea, and it was incredible to share a dressing room with him.”
At Chelsea he scored 164 goals in 381 appearances, but his greatest legacy came in Europe. In the 2012 Champions League final, Drogba scored the dramatic late equaliser against Bayern Munich before stepping up to convert the decisive penalty in the shootout – delivering Chelsea their first ever European crown. Internationally, he tallied 65 goals in 105 caps for Ivory Coast, becoming their all-time top scorer.
While Terry and Drogba defined his teammates, Carvalho insists Mourinho shaped his career. When asked who had the biggest impact on him, the former Portuguese international swiftly replied, “Mourinho, for all the reasons and more.
“I’m the player who played the most games under him. He was a coach who paid close attention to detail, who demanded a lot. And I handled that demand well.”
Carvalho’s reflections underline why Chelsea’s mid-2000s side remains so iconic. With Mourinho’s tactical brilliance, Terry’s resilience, and Drogba’s firepower, the team had balance, discipline, and star power in equal measure. Importantly, the attitude and culture Mourinho instilled during his time at Chelsea helped the club win accolades even after he departed, as the mentality of never accepting defeat until the final moment continued to resonate for as long as those legendary icons remained at the club.
