Chelsea manager Antonio Conte is interested in signing Leicester midfielder Danny Drinkwater as Nemanja Matic’s replacement, reports Sky Sports.
The Premier League champions sold Matic to rivals Manchester United in a deal worth £40m and Conte has been given assurances he will be able to use those funds to sign a replacement.
Chelsea have already signed Monaco midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko for £40m but are now weighing up a move for Drinkwater, in a move that would reunite the England international with N’Golo Kante.
Drinkwater and Kante former a formidable understanding in the midfield for Leicester during their Premier League winning season in 2015/16 and the 27-year-old is now a target for Conte, who is also interested in Bayern Munich youngster Renato Sanches.
Danny Drinkwater: Has won possession in the midfield third more times (331) than any other player in the last 2 Premier League seasons pic.twitter.com/sC50W9U7y3
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) August 1, 2017
Conte spoke with Bayern head coach Carlo Ancelotti after their friendly last week about the prospect of bringing Sanches to Stamford Bridge and the Bundesliga champions have already conceded he can leave this summer in search of regular first-team football.
Drinkwater has won possession in the midfield third more times (331) than any other player in the last two Premier League campaigns.
