Former Chelsea striker Kerry Dixon has admitted that he can understand why Didier Drogba has decided to leave the club.

It was confirmed on Tuesday that the 34-year-old will leave Stamford Bridge in the summer, and Dixon believes that the Ivorian has left for financial gain.

"You can never say it's a perfect time. Didier would have been keen to stay at the club but perhaps he's been offered a more lucrative deal and a new adventure. It's all about what Didier wants in his life. He's 34 and probably wants to do something different," Dixon told the BBC.

"He loves Chelsea and even though a lot of big clubs in Europe would have been tempted, I don't think he'd have wanted to compete against Chelsea next season. So he's looked at one last pay day and if that's the case, no-one can blame him at his age."

Drogba scored the decisive penalty in last Saturday's Champions League win over Bayern Munich.