Soccer's bad boy is in UN goodwill

London: On the United Nations website there is a black-and-white portrait of Didier Drogba. It was taken by Rankin, the British photographer, as part of the organisation's campaign to try to halve world poverty by 2015.

If the names "Didier Drogba" and "United Nations" in the same sentence come as a shock, the picture itself is even more startling.

The Chelsea and Ivory Coast striker wears an expensive-looking jumper over a white shirt. His arms are folded, resting on a white football. He looks confidently into the camera, head slightly tilted, hair gelled back, the epitome of calm, control and relaxation.

Can this really be the same player who ran amok after Chelsea's Champions League semifinal loss to Barcelona last year? The player who ranted and swore into a television camera, his eyes wide and wild, so emotionally unhinged and upset at the performance of Tom Henning Ovrebo, the Norwegian referee, who refused to award Chelsea a penalty? It seems almost impossible.

Jamie Redknapp described him as a "beast" for his powerful style, leading the line with aggression and strength. He can be unplayable for opposition defenders and unpalatable for supporters of the beautiful game, who prefer their heroes to stay on their feet. As a heavyweight striker, he can go to ground too quickly, although he has improved this season.

Little sympathy

Even so, when Jonny Evans thrust a high kung-fu kick into his chest last weekend, with Drogba clutching his chest and writhing on the ground, the cry was still: "Get up!" There isn't too much sympathy from neutral supporters for this player.

Yet there is more to Drogba than the powerfully set, prodigiously talented striker with a reputation for falling over too easily. There must be. Why else would Pepsi invest an estimated £3 million (Dh18.25 million) in adding him to their impressive stable of global stars?

Pepsi's decision to choose Didier Drogba could therefore be seen as a strange one, though they appear eager to break into the market in Africa, where the World Cup will be played this summer with Drogba the star turn for the continent's best team, Ivory Coast. At 33-1 to win the tournament, they are considered a decent outside bet to be Africa's first world champions, with Drogba leading their charge.

Then we will see the tall, snarling, powerful street fighter, a lethal finisher and a dedicated, passionate team player, but he is just as renowned for his moments of madness.

Drogba was sent off in the 2008 Champions League final after slapping Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic. Last November he was banned for three matches after Chelsea lost to Burnley on penalties in the fourth round of the Carling Cup at Stamford Bridge. Drogba made a crude gesture at Burnley fans and threw a coin back into the crowd, having scored his side's opening goal.

Then there was the Champions League semi-final second leg in May, when Drogba swore into a camera and had to be dragged away by manager Guus Hiddink. Is this really the athlete Pepsi want to follow in Beckham's golden footsteps?

But, as the Rankin portrait shows, there is a very different side to Didier Drogba, UN Goodwill Ambassador and charity fundraiser.

Speaking about why he has committed to raise £2.5 million to build a hospital in Abidjan, the city in which he lived until he was five years old, Drogba said: "I have seen much suffering throughout Africa, especially with my work with the UN. But when I visited a hospital in Abidjan earlier this year, I was shocked by the terrible conditions.

"We hear about all the incurable diseases, but these children are just as likely to die from diabetes because there is no insulin available.

"It was then I decided the foundation's first project should be to build and fund a hospital giving people basic health care and a chance just to stay alive."