Photo: SkySPorts
Leicester City midfielder Danny Drinkwater has asked to leave the club amid interest from Chelsea.
The Premier League champions have had two bids turned down for the England player, who last summer signed a contract extension to 2021.
Leicester have previously stated they do not wish to lose Drinkwater, 27, who was an integral part of the Foxes’ title-winning squad in 2016.
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However, Chelsea boss Antonio Conte wants a replacement for Nemanja Matic.
Drinkwater played in 35 of Leicester’s 38 league games in their title-winning season and formed an impressive midfield partnership with N’Golo Kante, who joined Chelsea last July.
He has yet to play this season because of a thigh injury.
The playmaker, who joined Leicester in 2012 from Manchester United, has won three England caps since making his international debut in March 2016.
Drinkwater joined the Manchester United academy at the age of nine, progressing through the ranks before earning a trainee contract in July 2006.
In his first season at the club, Drinkwater became a regular in the Manchester United under-18 team, making 27 appearances and scoring two goals.
He received his first taste of reserve team action that same season, coming off the bench to replace Ritchie Jones in a 5–2 Premier Reserve League win at home to Wigan Athletic.
The following season, Drinkwater consolidated his position in the under-18s team while increasing his presence in the reserves.
In the 2008 Lancashire Senior Cup final against Liverpool on 31 July 2008, Drinkwater came on as a 56th-minute substitute for Rodrigo Possebon before scoring the winning goal three minutes from full-time.
In the 2008–09 season, Drinkwater became a regular in the reserve team, making 18 appearances and getting on the scoresheet twice.
He has previously spent time on loan at Huddersfield Town, Cardiff City, Watford and Barnsley.
