Dean Smith: Danny Drinkwater deal is not a gamble for Aston Villa
Dean Smith has denied signing Danny Drinkwater represents a gamble but admitted the midfielder has joined Villa with a point to prove.
Drinkwater became the club’s first signing of the January transfer window on Tuesday when he arrived on loan from Chelsea until the end of the season.
The 29-year-old spent the first half of the campaign at Burnley but made just one Premier League appearance and made headlines when he suffered an ankle injury following a fight in a nightclub.
Yet Smith believes Drinkwater is eager to kick-start a career which has gone stale since he joined Chelsea from Leicester for £35million two-and-a-half years ago, having been a key member of the Foxes team which won the Premier League in 2016.
Drinkwater himself is thought to have exercised an escape clause which allowed him to end his Burnley loan early as he seeks regular playing time.
Smith said: “When meeting him I liked the hunger – I saw it in his eyes.
“He has a lot to prove now because it hasn’t happened for him at Chelsea. We’re going to give him an environment where he can flourish and he looks really hungry.
“I don’t see it as a gamble. I see it as a really top quality signing of a top player in this league.”
Villa were in need of midfield reinforcements after John McGinn suffered a fractured ankle last month and Drinkwater brings some much-needed Premier League experience.
Smith said: “I’ve spoken to people who have worked with him before. He wants to play football and show everyone what he is about
“Things happen off the pitch all time - some get reported and some of them don’t. But I felt at the time Burnley and Danny dealt with everything that had to be dealt with and he’s moved on from that.
“He never shied away from that when I met him. So there’s been an honesty about him right from the off.”
