West Ham have joined Southampton and Crystal Palace in the race to sign Chelsea outcast midfielder Danny Drinkwater, claims The Daily Mirror.
Drinkwater only joined Chelsea 12 months ago but their £35m investment is free to leave the club after failing to make any impression at Stamford Bridge.
The England international endured a nightmare maiden campaign at Chelsea and failed to win over Antonio Conte’s trust, while new manager Maurizio Sarri is ready to discard the midfielder.
Southampton and Palace are already pondering loan offers for the former Premier League winner, but West Ham are now ready to challenge their Premier League rivals.
The Hammers have already bolstered their midfield options with the free transfer of former Arsenal ace Jack Wilshere but may be required to dip into the transfer market again.
Pedro Obiang and Cheikhou Kouyate have both been linked with moves away from the London Stadium this summer and Manuel Pellegrini is concerned by a lack of depth in that area of the pitch.
Pellegrini was interested in prising Andre Gomes away from Barcelona but the Euro 2016 winner is now set for a long spell on the sidelines through injury.
Drinkwater, 28, only made 13 appearances in the Premier League last season and garnered a less-than-impressive WhoScored rating of 6.95 from his five starts.
