Danny Drinkwater opens up on 2019 arrest for drink-driving and reveals he would ‘get with any bird I could’ on boozy nights out in London during troubled spell at Chelsea… as he announces retirement aged 33

• Drinkwater, 33, announced his retirement from football on Monday
• After leaving Chelsea last year, he has now decided to hang up his boots
• Follow Mail Sport’s new Chelsea WhatsApp channel for all the breaking news 

Danny Drinkwater has revealed his arrest for drink-driving in 2019 was a wake-up call as he opened up on his boozing and partying during his ill-fated spell at Chelsea.

Drinkwater, 33, on Monday announced his retirement during an interview on Jake Humphrey’s High Performance Podcast.

The Premier League winner joined Chelsea from Leicester for £35million in 2017 but only played a bit-part role. He went on loan to Burnley, Aston Villa, Turkish club Kasimpasa and Reading in the Championship before leaving Stamford Bridge following the expiry of his contract in June 2022. 

Drinkwater’s time at the Blues included being arrested for drink-driving after he crashed his car following a party in Cheshire.

He crashed his £125,000 Range Rover into a wall at 12.30am, just hours before the Blues’ win over West Ham at Stamford Bridge. Drinkwater was later banned from driving for 20 months.

Danny Drinkwater opened up on his drink-driving arrest in 2019 on the High Performance Podcast

Drinkwater, 33, was banned from the roads for 20 months after admitting drink driving in 2019

The former Leicester star admitted boozy nights out in London affected his performances

Drinkwater joined Chelsea in 2017 but struggled to make much of an impact amid injury issues

https://youtube.com/watch?v=stKVDoohuEs%3Frel%3D0

‘That was a massive wake-up sign for me,’ he told the podcast. ‘I remember I was in the cell for 23 hours – they usually take two or three hours them things – sobering up and I’m in this cell thinking “what the f*** are you doing mate”. 

‘This is not you at all. It’s not you as a person, it’s not how you want to be as a person. You need to get a hold of yourself here. That’s when I started seeking outside help with it all.’

Drinkwater’s drink-driving arrest was part of the infamous ‘Wagatha Christie’ trial between Coleen Rooney and Rebekah Vardy. 

Vardy told her agent Caroline Watt she ‘wanted paying’ for information about Drinkwater leaving police custody. She claimed during the trial that it was because she was ‘deeply affected’ by drink-driving after her ex-husband ‘killed two people’.

Rebekah sent a message to Ms Watt to tell her that Drinkwater had been arrested, the court heard.

‘Danny Drinkwater arrested… Crashed his car drunk with 2 girls in it … both in hospital one with broken ribs,’ court documents show.

Rebekah also said: ‘I want paying for this.’

Drinkwater also admitted his off-field activities, such as boozy nights out in London, affected his performances on the pitch.

‘I was a single lad in London at the time so I was, without giving too much detail away, I was being a single lad in London, getting stuck into living in the city,’ Drinkwater said.

Drinkwater, who won the Premier League with Leicester City in 2016, has retired

‘I was trying to enjoy that side of life as a kind of cover for everything else. That’s what I’d use to enjoy myself because everything else is going pretty s****y.

‘You look back now and I’d be going out drinking, getting with any bird that I can. It was just mad.

‘You’re waking up with a hangover and it’s like f***, last night’s happiness has disappeared and it’s back to reality.’ 

‘It was just not me as a focused footballer.’

Drinkwater’s final loan spell from Chelsea was with Reading in the Championship in 2021-22

Announcing his retirement, Drinkwater said: ‘It’s probably been a long time coming, especially with the last year, but I think it’s time to officially announce it now.

‘I didn’t think it would bother me but saying it then it’s almost like scratching a nerve a bit.

‘I think I’ve been ready for it, not stopping at my peak and it’s simmered down a bit, that’s helped the transition.

‘I think I’ve been in limbo for too long, I’ve either been wanting to play but not getting the opportunities to play at a level where I felt valued.

‘I just thought I’m restless here for no reason, 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 or seven, it was never going to be an easy thing.

‘I think the way it’s died down has definitely helped. If I was playing week in, week out and had to stop through injury or age I think it would be trickier.

‘I’ve had quite a few offers from Championship clubs, but I never felt the burn, it did nothing for me.’ 

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