Danny Drinkwater, the former Leicester and Chelsea midfielder, has announced his retirement from professional football, citing been “in limbo” for an extended period been “in limbo” for an extended period as the reason.
Having played a key role in Leicester City’s stunning Premier League title victory in 2016, the 33-year-old moved to Chelsea the following year.
However, Drinkwater struggled to establish himself at Stamford Bridge, leading to unsuccessful loan spells at Burnley and Aston Villa, while Off-pitch problems compounded his woes.
In 2019, he pleaded guilty to drink-driving after a car crash, followed by an ankle injury sustained outside a nightclub later the same year.
In 2020, he head-butted his Aston Villa teammate Jota during a training ground incident.
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Drinkwater’s last appearances came on loan at Reading in 2021-22 and he had been without a club since his Chelsea contract expired at the end of that season.
Speaking on The High Performance Podcast, he said: “It’s been a long time coming maybe, especially with the last year, but I think it’s time to officially announce it now.
“I think I’ve been in limbo for too long. I’ve been wanting to play but not getting the opportunity to play at a standard or a level where I felt valued.
“I’m happy not playing football but I’m happy playing football, so do I just shake hands with the sport?”
“It’s all I’ve known. It’s been my life since I was six, seven years old. It was never going to be an easy thing,” he said.
“If I was playing week in, week out and I had to say I’ve got to stop, maybe through injury or through just age, not being able to get about the pitch like I’d like to, I think it would be trickier.”
Capped three times by England, Drinkwater was a graduate of Manchester United’s youth academy but did not make a senior appearance for the Old Trafford club before joining Leicester in 2012.