Danny Drinkwater reveals depths of Chelsea nightmare as he admits he ‘wasted five years’

Danny Drinkwater has opened up on the true extent of his Chelsea nightmare, which saw him brutally admit that he wasted some of the best years of his career.

The 32-year-old played a pivotal role in Leicester City‘s fairytale title-winning side during the 2015-16 season, before he sealed a huge £35million move to Chelsea two years later where he put pen to paper on a five-year deal.

However, the big-money switch didn’t pay off for Drinkwater and the midfielder was cast aside for the majority of his time at Stamford Bridge.

Drinkwater, who only made 23 appearances for the club while scoring just once, has revealed the difficulties he faced less than a month after being released by the Blues, where he talked about how he ended up drink driving after a number of deaths in his family.

‘I’m relieved, because it’s clear it wasn’t a situation that was good for me or the club,’ Drinkwater told Sky Sports when he was asked about his Chelsea exit.

‘I’m angry because of how it’s gone and how I was treated – I’m not bitter about it, you can look back and say “what ifs” and have hindsight which is obviously huge. I think it was a long time coming.’

Danny Drinkwater has opened up on his nightmare stint as a Chelsea player

Drinkwater denied living the excessive party lifestyle during his time at Stamford Bridge

Drinkwater was asked if he has wasted the best years of his career, to which he responded: ‘Yeah, it feels like “what, have you thrown those five years away?”

‘If you’d stayed at Leicester, if you didn’t get injured and if the club treated you differently. They’re all ifs. It’s frustrating, 100 per cent. Don’t think I’m still not burning about how it’s gone. I still kick myself for it. But on the other side, am I going to keep kicking myself, because I can’t change it?

‘Can I help myself going forward? That’s why I went on loan, why I went to Aston Villa and Burnley on loan, which didn’t work, and going to Turkey at the age of 30 – I never thought I’d do that. 

‘It’s also the reason I dropped down to the Championship (with Reading). I’ve been trying to do the right things. As I’ve tried doing them, something’s gone wrong.’

The 32-year-old midfielder has admitted that he wasted some of his best years as a footballer 

Drinkwater reveals he sought out therapy as a result of his Chelsea struggles and denied that he had an easy life not playing every week.

‘That’s not true,’ he said when asked if he lived the high life on big wages and rarely training. ‘”Living the life” lasts about two weeks. You figure out you’re not involved in games, only training, so I could go out with the lads, I’m single, it’s great, I can do all this. I was loving it, but in the background, there’s always things that burn away. 

‘And as a person, if you’re not open enough to speak to the right people, it chews away at you. I didn’t learn that until further down the line. I was always like “I’m a big strong bloke, I can deal with this”.’

Drinkwater made headlines for the wrong reason in 2019, after he was banned from the roads for 20 months following a crash near his home while he was two-and-a-half times over the legal limit.

And along with multiple losses in his family, Drinkwater admits he was suffering from mental health issues at the time. 

‘I was [suffering with mental health issues in 2019]. My nan and grandad passed, dad got diagnosed with leukaemia, I lost my dog and was drink driving, which is just not me. I made a big mistake. I was also fighting for my son, which was going on constantly and takes its toll.

Drinkwater reveals the death of his nan and grandad, as well as his dog, left him with mental health issues in 2019

Drinkwater was banned from the roads for 20 months in 2019 following a crash near his home while he was two-and-a-half times over the legal limit

‘I think when someone has too much to juggle, it can hit you. And it did hit me. And I was like “wow, is this what it’s come to?” And I was lost.

‘When football is going well, everything else seems easier to deal with, but when this isn’t going so well, everything seems so heavy. I definitely think that’s the lowest I’d been.’

When asked if he received help, he said: ‘I didn’t think I was depressed, but I saw the sports psychologist and if I hadn’t, I definitely think it could’ve gone that way because I was just fighting and fighting, and it wasn’t helping anybody.’

His rollercoaster time at Stamford Bridge was best summed up when then-Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri told the player, through a translator, to find a new club at the 11th hour – a year after he joined the club.

‘It got to the last hour of the transfer window and [I] got pulled into the office, not expected at all,’ Drinkwater explains. ‘”Don’t think you’re going to be in our plans”. And I was like “what?”

‘Me and Sarri got on like a house on fire off the pitch. You couldn’t chalk and cheese it from on the pitch, off the pitch. It was mad but at the same time good. I was like – “why are you telling me now? An hour before the window closes? I need time”. He replied, “No, no, we’ve got clubs abroad you can look at…”

Drinkwater reveals he got on well with then-Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri (left) off the pitch, but was told he was no longer needed at the 11th hour of the 2018 summer transfer window

‘My decision then was, “I’m not going, I can’t go. My priority is my son. I need to get this figured out”. So I decided to stay until January.’ 

While his Chelsea nightmare left an indelible mark on his career, Drinkwater is now looking to the future and reignite his love for football.

The England international spent last season on loan at Reading where he played 32 games, and most importantly regained his confidence as a player. 

‘I joined Reading, and I expected to be flying after eight games, but after 20 games, I was like – what’s happening here? I still didn’t feel properly fit and I can’t get my sharpness. I felt like I wasn’t really benefitting the team… and I was like “wow, has it gone? What’s happened?”.

‘Then you get a feeling back. The last part of last season, it was good. A new gaffer came in, and it was good. He helped me, and I felt I was helping the team. That’s probably the first time I’d enjoyed football for years.’

Drinkwater spent last season on loan at Reading where he played 32 games for the Royals

Drinkwater has revealed that he’s had plenty of offers when it comes to his next step in his career and now it’s all about making the right decision for him and his family. 

‘There are a few offers flying about,’ he said. ‘It’s a weird time for football, especially when you’re free to the market.

‘That last season helped me massively, getting all those games under my belt, and hopefully the second half of the season showed I’ve still got the ability and hunger to push myself.

‘There are options, it’s just about the decision. I love winning, so it’s a difficult thing to let go at this age.’