DRINK DRIVES OFF!
FOOTBALL’S NO.1 TRANSFER GOSSIP COLUMN COTTAGERS ON TARGETT Freeman could be in the bag Pedersen Rams raid
Neil Moxley
DANNY DRINKWATER is being primed for a move away from Chelsea.
The midfielder’s name is being circulated among Premier League clubs as he appears not to be in new boss Maurizio Sarri’s plans.
Chelsea eventually sealed a £35million deal for the England international on deadline day last summer.
But injuries beset his first season at Stamford Bridge and he started just five matches in the Premier League.
The Blues have bought in new boy Jorginho and that leaves Drinkwater further out of the picture.
Margins
Apart from the arrival of the £57m capture from Napoli, Sarri also has Ruben Loftus-cheek to call upon – and that only leaves Drinkwater even more on the margins.
The only issue in the midfielder’s favour is he remains a domestically qualified player for Champions League purposes – but Chelsea’s move for keeper Rob Green has helped them reach the quota.
The move to London has been little short of a disaster for the former Manchester United trainee.
He made himself unavailable for selection after England boss Gareth Southgate came calling, but that backfired as he was never near selection for the Three Lions, who went on to confound expectations with a World Cup semi-final.
He also left Leicester City under a cloud – but may well find forgiveness among Foxes’ fans if he were to return to the King Power Stadium. FULHAM have returned to SOUTHAMPTON with an improved offer for left-back Matt Targett.
Former England Under-21 international Targett (right) impressed for the Cottagers last season as he helped the club to promotion.
Targett had been on loan and Fulham opened talks at the end of the season – but such was his form that Southampton decided they wanted to keep him and let another left-back Sam Mcqueen leave.
Slavisa Jokanovic and his spotters have looked at the likes of Manchester City’s Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ludwig Augustinsson of Werder Bremen – but those deals have proven complicated.
Now the Cottagers, who have already made big moves in this summer – landing Andre Schurrle and Jean Michael Seri – have raised their bid making Southampton ready to listen. CHELSEA have moved ahead of AC MILAN in the race to land Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuain after offering the Argentine a £120,000-a-week contract. Higuain, 30, is surplus to requirements in Turin following the £90million capture of Cristiano Ronaldo. Blues boss Maurizio Sarri wants to link up again with Higuain (left) after working with him at Napoli. Milan have offered the player £80,000 a week – boosting Chelsea’s hopes of sealing a £90m deal to sign both Higuain and defender Daniele Rugani. Tom Hopkinson WEST BROM want to sign attacking midfielder Luke Freeman from QPR. The £3million-rated 26-year-old joined Rangers in January 2017 and has impressed since his move. Freeman is versatile and can operate as a No.10 or out wide on either wing. He joined Arsenal’s academy from the Gills in 2010 then went to Stevenage two years later. Neil Moxley
DERBY COUNTY want to loan BIRMINGHAM CITY signing Kristian Pedersen.
Frank Lampard is interested in the Dane who signed for Garry Monk last month from Union Berlin in a £1.5million deal.
Pedersen, 23, got a fouryear deal after impressing against Brum during a friendly 12 months ago.
But due to ongoing financial issues at St Andrew’s it appears the player may be in limbo due to a transfer embargo.