Why Chelsea need to cut all ties with Danny Drinkwater after Burnley snub
According to The Sun, Chelsea midfielder Danny Drinkwater could be sent back to Stamford Bridge when the transfer window reopens in January, with Burnley mulling over the possibility of pulling the plug on his loan agreement.
The 29-year-old England international initially joined Burnley on loan until January, with the Clarets holding the option to extend his stay at Turf Moor until the end of the season. (h/t Sun)
However, the Lancashire outfit are unwilling to exercise that clause due to Drinkwater’s failure to break into Sean Dyche’s first-team plans. In fact, the 29-year-old’s wages of around £120,000-a-week is way too high for the Clarets.
Drinkwater’s only involvement for Burnley this season came back in August in the 3-1 defeat at the hands of Sunderland in the second round of the EFL Cup.
With Jack Cork, Ashley Westwood and Jeff Hendrick all accomplished midfielders at the club, the Chelsea loanee has found action in the Premier League hard to come by.
His involvement in a brawl outside a nightclub in September hasn’t done his reputation a world of good.
As per The Sun, Drinkwater suffered an ankle ligament damage after being battered by six thugs outside a nightclub for trying to bed another footballer’s lover. Understandably, things have not transpired well for the 29-year-old on his loan stint.
A youth exponent of Man United, Danny Drinkwater never came close to making the grade at Old Trafford and spent time on loan at Huddersfield Town, Cardiff City, Watford and Barnsley before joining Leicester City in 2012.
The central midfielder went on to win the Championship title with the Foxes and was instrumental in the club’s incredible Premier League triumph in the 2015-16 season before Chelsea acquired his services in 2017.
Having endured an injury-stricken debut season at Stamford Bridge under Antonio Conte, Drinkwater was completely frozen out of the first-team fold by Maurizio Sarri in the previous campaign.
The 29-year-old’s fortunes did not improve even after Frank Lampard took charge of the club.
Verdict
Despite his status as a Premier League winner and an England international, the 29-year-old doesn’t have a future at Chelsea.
With the likes of Mateo Kovacic, N’Golo Kante and Jorginho all accomplished stalwarts vying for a place in Lampard’s midfield trio and Ruben Loftus-Cheek set to return from injury, it is hardly a surprise that he is surplus to demands.
To that end, the best thing for Chelsea would be to cash in on the player as soon as possible, given that his advancing years is only going to depreciate his market value.
With Burnley planning to send him back from his loan spell, Chelsea face the risk of keeping him on the books and paying him huge wages for doing next to nothing.
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Suffice to say, Chelsea need to plan a spree when their transfer ban is lifted, and the sale of Danny Drinkwater to another club would hand a boost to their transfer kitty.