Danny Drinkwater: The Rise and Fall of an England International
The Crazy (True) Story of Former Leicester City Title Winner Danny Drinkwater
Drinkwater played at the highest level of English football before spiralling in his personal life and finding himself in football wilderness at age 33.
So what EXACTLY happened to this football star? The Sporting Blog tells the full story.
Controversial football star Danny Drinkwater
The story of Danny Drinkwater is a peculiar one, as he endured setbacks early in his career before achieving redemption.
After realising his potential at the top level, the England international would throw away his career with poor decision-making.
He won a league title and represented his country - but he’s been without a club for 12 months now.
So, what went wrong for Danny Drinkwater? The Sporting Blog tells all!
Man Utd Dream Dashed
Drinkwater was born in Manchester and joined United’s academy at the age of nine before earning a trainee contract at 16 and a professional contract at 18.
He lived the dream of being a boyhood supporter who went on to play for his club, but he never made a senior appearance for the Red Devils.
Drinkwater had Michael Carrick, Owen Hargreaves, Darren Fletcher, Anderson and Paul Scholes for competition at United, so he was loaned out to get first-team football.
United were chasing titles and European honours when Drinkwater turned professional, so youngsters had to be great to get an opportunity to play.
The academy graduate made appearances for Huddersfield Town (2009/10), Cardiff City (2010/11), Watford (2011) and Barnsley (2011/12) but wasn’t close to breaking into the senior squad after three years.
Time ran out for Drinkwater in 2012 and United sold him to Leicester City.
It can be devastating for players to leave their boyhood club, especially when failing to make the grade at the senior level despite their best efforts, but Drinkwater didn’t let the setback kill his career.
In fact, leaving United would end up being the best thing that happened to him…
Redemption at Leicester City
Drinkwater joined Leicester on a three-and-a-half-year deal in January 2012 and helped the Foxes reach the playoffs in his first full season.
He contributed six goals from 44 league games and was also nominated for the Championship Player of the Year Award.
In the following campaign (2013/14), Leicester were promoted back to the Premier League and Drinkwater was named in the Championship Team of the Year after having a hand in 11 goals from 45 outings.
He signed a long-term deal that same summer and would help City consolidate in their first top-flight season since 2005. They finished 14th in Nigel Pearson’s fourth consecutive season.
Claudio Ranieri would replace Pearson and he made a Premier League title-winner out of Drinkwater in his first season as manager.
Leicester incredibly finished top of the table in 2015/16 and the 33-year-old played in 35 of 38 games, contributing 11 goals.
City finished above Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea to win their first-ever top-flight crown, but that would be the peak of Drinkwater’s career.
The midfielder was rewarded with an England call-up for his form throughout the season, but he failed to make the Euro 2016 squad. His midfield partner N’Golo Kante was sold to Chelsea that summer too.
Nevertheless, Drinkwater picked himself up and played in every Champions League game the following season, helping Leicester reach the quarter-finals.
The Foxes struggled domestically, however, finishing 12th in the table, and Drinkwater would end his time at the King Power Stadium that summer.
He renewed acquaintances with Kante at Chelsea in 2017 for £35m, but his deadline-day move would end up killing his career.
Cursed Chelsea Move
Drinkwater had a nightmarish debut season at Stamford Bridge, starting only five league games and one in Europe due to stiff competition and injury problems.
The England international made a total of 22 appearances across the board, amassing only 1151 minutes of playing time.
Kante forged a formidable partnership with Cesc Fabregas while Tiemoué Bakayoko was used as cover, so Drinkwater fell down the pecking order.
He suffered a calf strain at the beginning and end of the season, spending long periods on the bench because the team were winning in his absence.
Danny Drinkwater celebrates a fresh start in 2019
Things really unravelled in 2018/19, however, as Drinkwater failed to make a league appearance for Chelsea after being told he was surplus to requirements.
Maurizio Sarri said to the midfielder that he wasn’t part of his plans just one hour before the end of the summer transfer window, but Drinkwater wasn’t prepared to rush his departure because of his young son.
The England international played 30 minutes of the Blues’ Community Shield defeat to Manchester City in August and wouldn’t be seen again due to ongoing fitness woes.
Danny Drinkwater’s experiences playing for Chelsea
Drinkwater made headlines for an off-field issue, being charged for drink-driving that summer. He crashed his Range Rover through a wall while driving two times over the legal drink-drive limit.
He was treated for injuries along with two passengers, resulting in him being banned for 20 months.
He admitted in a 2020 interview with the Telegraph that he’d lost his love for football at Chelsea, so he sought a loan move away to turn things around.
Drinkwater’s time playing pre-season at Chelsea in 2020
He joined Burnley in the summer of 2019 but lasted only months at Turf Moor before his spell was cut short by Sean Dyche.
Drinkwater was allegedly attacked in a nightclub and picked up an injury that sidelined him for three months early on, so he wasn’t in any shape to play football.
Danny Drinkwater celebrates his move to Burnley
Drinkwater made just two appearances before Aston Villa took a punt in January 2020. Drinkwater was unfit upon his move to the Midlands and managed only four appearances in five months.
Danny Drinkwater joins Aston Villa in January 2020
He would later admit frustration over being an unused substitute for Villa against his former club Leicester in March, which led to him headbutting a teammate in training.
Drinkwater was sent home for the incident and would only make the matchday squad one more time before the season was up. He failed to make an appearance in his last four months at Villa.
Drinkwater returned to Chelsea for 2020/21 but wasn’t given a squad number. And months into the season, he was loaned out to Kasımpaşa, featuring 11 times in all competitions.
Danny Drinkwater’s move to Kasımpaşa SK in Turkey
He spent his first few weeks in Turkey injured and ended his time at the Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Stadium on the sidelines, so it wasn’t the most fruitful spell away.
The challenges Danny Drinkwater faced in his career
The following campaign (2021/22) saw Drinkwater sent to Reading where he played regularly (34 appearances) and went some way to turn his career around, but Chelsea released him after his contract expired that summer.
Drinkwater’s loan to Reading FC
Present Day For Danny Drinkwater
The now 33-year-old hasn’t played for another club since leaving Chelsea and he’s not retired, so he remains a free agent.
Drinkwater did update fans on his whereabouts in March 2023, revealing on social media that he’s in good shape and waiting for the right opportunity, but it remains to be seen where he’ll end up.
In a 2022 interview with Sky Sports, Drinkwater admitted regret over how his Chelsea move went but said family tragedy played a part in his mental health deteriorating.
He spoke to a sports psychologist to get his head right and appears content to bide his time before making a decision on his future.
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