Chelsea: Danny Drinkwater trends on social media after performance vs Bournemouth | OneFootball

Thomas Tuchel handed minutes to various Chelsea stars including Hakim Ziyech, Christian Pulisic and Tammy Abraham against Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium on Tuesday night.

However, Danny Drinkwater was the name trending on social media after full-time following an impressive first-half performance against the Championship outfit.

Drinkwater’s last appearance for Chelsea’s first team was in July 2019 - a pre-season friendly against Reading. His last competitive match for the Blues, meanwhile, was against Derby County in the League Cup way back in October 2018.

Drinkwater has endured tough time since joining Chelsea

The 31-year-old has endured a tough time since leaving Leicester City, where he won the Premier League title playing alongside N’Golo Kante, for Chelsea in 2017.

After failing to break into the Blues’ starting XI, Drinkwater went on to spend time on loan at Burnley, Aston Villa and Kasimpasa.

Chelseakicking a 16-year-old during a match against Tottenham’s Under-23 side in December 2020.

One month later, he denied claims that he was celebrating Frank Lampard’s sacking following an eyebrow-raising post on his Instagram story.

Can Danny Drinkwater save his Chelsea career?

Despite all the controversy, Tuchel has handed Drinkwater a surprise opportunity to show what he’s about ahead of the 2021-22 campaign.

He played in a behind-closed-doors march against Peterborough United earlier this month - a game Chelsea won 6-1 - and started for the European champions against Bournemouth.

The former England international, who made three appearances for his country in 2016 under Roy Hodgson, impressed fans with a classy 45-minute performance in central midfield alongside Conor Gallagher.

Drinkwater looked assured in possession and dictated the tempo of the match before he was subbed off for Jake Clarke-Salter at half-time.

Video: Danny Drinkwater vs Bournemouth

You can watch his individual highlights here…

Fans react to Danny Drinkwater's performance

One of the comments on the YouTube video simply read: “Cesc Drinkwater”.

And they weren’t the only ones comparing Drinkwater to Fabregas after the match.

Let’s check out some of the best reaction to the forgotten midfielder’s pre-season masterclass…

Bournemouth went on to break the deadlock midway through the second half thanks to a goal from Emiliano Marcondes.

However, Chelsea sealed a 2-1 win following two goals in four minutes from Armando Broja and Ike Ugbo.