'He's no Matic but a good fit for Chelsea' - Drinkwater transfer talked up by Schwarzer

Chelsea’s interest in Danny Drinkwater has been hailed by Mark Schwarzer, despite the Leicester man not being a direct replacement for Nemanja Matic.

The Blues have moved one midfielder out this summer, with Matic joining Manchester United for £40 million, while acquiring another for a similar fee.

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Tiemoue Bakayoko has arrived from Monaco, but he is nursing a knock and Antonio Conte remains light on numbers.

With Champions League action to take into consideration this season more additions are required, and Schwarzer believes a deal for Drinkwater - which Goal shed light on last week - would make sense for all concerned.

The former Chelsea and Leicester goalkeeper told talkSPORT: “He’s not a Matic, he’s more of a creative player.

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“At Leicester last season we saw that he struggled without having N’Golo Kante next to him, but Danny is a very talented young man and has done incredibly well at Leicester.

“I think he’s capable of making that step up.

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“Whether or not he’s someone who will play week-in week-out, whether he’s good enough to make that step up to be a mainstream player in Chelsea’s first XI, we’ll only know once he makes that step if it happens. But he’s definitely got the ability.”

Drinkwater starred for Leicester alongside Kante during their remarkable Premier League title triumph in 2015-16.

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His efforts earned England recognition, with the 27-year-old making his senior debut in March 2016.

He was, however, to miss out on a place in Roy Hodgson’s squad at Euro 2016 and has since slipped down the pecking order.

Chelsea, though, remain in the market for greater options in the middle of the park and Drinkwater would bring English top-flight experience with him, while also ticking a home-grown box.