‘I was so relieved to quit Chelsea – the way the club treated me left me fuming’

Danny Drinkwater played with Chelsea for five years, however he only made twenty-three games until his contract expired in 2022, and he was released.

Danny Drinkwater has expressed dissatisfaction with Chelsea, acknowledging that he squandered some of his best playing years there. Drinkwater, 34, signed his first professional deal with the Red Devils in 2009 after starting his career in the Manchester United academy.

He was loaned to Huddersfield, Cardiff, Watford, and Barnsley instead of making a senior debut at Old Trafford. For an undisclosed amount, the central midfielder moved to Leicester in 2012, where he made a name for himself right away.

Drinkwater made 218 appearances for the Foxes between 2012 and 2017, contributing significantly to the team that won the 2013–14 EFL Championship and helping Claudio Ranieri win the 2015–16 Premier League title. Drinkwater moved to Chelsea for £35 million in 2017 with the hopes of helping the Stamford Bridge giants relive their own glory days in the English top division after being enticed by the possibility of joining a bigger club, like many of his teammates from Leicester’s heyday.

Drinkwater, however, only made 23 appearances for the team, therefore the move was not as successful as expected. According to the Mirror, he was instead loaned to Burnley, Aston Villa, Kasimpasa, and Reading prior to his release in 2022, when his five-year deal expired.

In an open interview with Sky Sports, Drinkwater talked about his feelings of relief and annoyance at leaving Chelsea. “I’m relieved because it’s clear that it wasn’t a situation that was good for me or the club,” he said, criticizing the club’s handling of his predicament.

“I’m not bitter, but I’m upset with how things have gone and how I was handled. What ifs? It took a while for it to happen. Drinkwater went on to say, “Yeah, it feels like ‘what have you thrown those five years away?'” in reference to the years of his career that were lost.

“If you hadn’t been hurt and had been treated differently by the club, you would have stayed at Leicester.” All of them are ifs. It’s absolutely frustrating. Don’t think that I’m not still enraged over its disappearance. I still feel bad about it. On the other hand, I can’t change anything, so will I continue to kick myself?

“Am I going to be able to help myself? That’s why I took out loans, why I took out loans to Burnley and Aston Villa, which didn’t work out, and why I never imagined traveling to Turkey at thirty. I dropped down to the Championship for the same reason. I’ve been making an effort to act morally. I’ve attempted to accomplish them, but something has gone wrong.

Drinkwater, who hasn’t played since June 2022, announced his retirement from professional football last October at the age of 33. “I think I’ve been in limbo for too long,” he stated at the time, adding, “I’ve been wanting to play but aren’t getting the chance to play at a level or standard where I feel valued.”

“I’ve always enjoyed football, but I’ve never been truly fascinated with it. It’s okay if I fall, but it’s the concept of not performing to my full potential.” After the international break, league football returns on Saturday with Leicester City hosting Chelsea at the King Power Stadium in an early Premier League kickoff.

As Premier League play continues, Chelsea, who are now in third position, wants to go closer to Manchester City, who are in second place, by four points. After settling for 1-1 draws with both Manchester United and Arsenal in November, they are hoping to make up ground.

They haven’t suffered a league defeat since their 2-1 loss to Liverpool at Anfield the previous week, and their most recent success was a 2-1 victory against Newcastle United at the end of October. Leicester has only won two of their 11 games this season, putting them in a difficult 15th place in the Premier League standings. After a run of poor performances, which included a 3-1 loss to Nottingham Forest, a 1-1 draw with Ipswich, and a crushing 3-0 thrashing by Manchester United, manager Steve Cooper will be keen to collect important points come Saturday.