Chelsea abandon Sanches chase to pursue Drinkwater

Chelsea have ended their interest in signing Bayern Munich's Renato Sanches and will instead further their pursuit of Leicester City's central midfielder Danny Drinkwater. 

Sanches has been heavily linked with a departure from the Bundesliga giants this summer, although Bayern have insisted that they will only sanction a loan move. 

The 19-year-old was hot property last summer, being linked with the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester United, after impressing for Portugal at the European Championships. 

The midfielder has struggled during his first season in Germany, leading Carlo Ancelotti open to the possibility of seeing him leave.

After appearing against them in a pre-season fixture this week, Chelsea were said to be discussing the possibility of taking Sanches to Stamford Bridge. Reports in Italy today suggest that their interest was short lived and now the only team with a strong desire to sign Sanches is free-spending AC Milan.

The Metro claims that instead of signing Sanches, the Premier League champions will look closer to home and chase Leicester City's Danny Drinkwater.

27-year-old Drinkwater personifies The Foxes' rise, driving them forward during their Premier League winning campaign and earning an England call up in the process.

Following the departure of Nemanja Matic, Chelsea feel that Drinkwater will be able to replace him easily and the fact that he has played alongside N'golo Kante previously provides another bonus.

Drinkwater is said to be interested in the move to London, but Leicester are demanding £30 million before they even consider a deal for their key player. 

 

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