Exclusive: Chelsea will launch second bid for Danny Drinkwater as they look to make three more summer signings Matt Law, football news correspondent
12 AUGUST 2017 • 1:18PM
Chelsea will make a second bid for Leicester City midfielder Danny Drinkwater in the coming week as they attempt to make at least three new signings before the transfer window shuts.
As revealed by Telegraph Sport, Leicester have already rejected one offer from Chelsea of around £15 million for Drinkwater this summer. Drinkwater has been left in the dark over his future, but Chelsea are preparing a second offer that is likely to be worth over £25m for the 27-year-old.It is understood that Drinkwater is interested in a move to Chelsea, even though he may find himself behind N’Golo Kante, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Cesc Fabregas in head coach Antonio Conte’s pecking order. But Leicester could put up a fight for Drinkwater and demand the £40m Chelsea received from Manchester United for Nemanja Matic.
The departure of Matic has left Conte short of options in the middle of the park as he plots how to combine Chelsea’s Premier League title defence with a return to the Champions League.
Chelsea considered trying to sign Drinkwater along with Kante last summer and have retained an interest ever since.
Other than giving Conte more midfield options, Drinkwater would boost Chelsea’s home-grown quota, which has been reduced by the departures of John Terry, Asmir Begovic and several youngsters. Chelsea have considered a number of home-grown options over the past few weeks, with Everton midfielder Ross Barkley and Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain also targeted.
A second bid for Drinkwater does not necessarily mean that Chelsea will not also try to add Barkley, who Tottenham are leading the chase for, or Oxlade-Chamberlain to their squad before the transfer window shuts. Conte has made no secret of the fact he thinks the Chelsea squad is currently too thin to cope with the demands of the Premier League and Champions League.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2017/08/12/chelsea-will-launch-second-bid-danny-drinkwater-look-make-three/