Drinkwater blessing ?

As others have mentioned, unlike Kasper, Vardy and Mahrez Danny is replaceable.

What Kasper is only the sixth best keeper in this division and replaceable and Danny with cash BUT Vardy the best striker we have had since Gary and integral to the way we play and Marhez we havn't had a player as talented as him in our history so who the Fuff are going to get to replace him ?

Anyone who wants to play for LCFC!

I guess like with Kante, we need to accept that replacing what Mahrez can offer is going to be perhaps near impossible and it's about adaptation....and perhaps (and I really really hope this continues to be the case) investment in our scouting system and still looking for those hidden gems.

Still, exciting times as we have what looks like a class defending who has come in and possibly another one who can adapt and play well in the PL,new have retained a top class PL experienced keeper (which irrelevant of one's view on Kasper's ranking, is still very hard to find), we have Ndidi, James back (who if people remember showed more potential than Drinkwater at the time), Iborra and Silva - who could both be very useful indeed, we have kept Vardy, brought in nacho, kept Mahrez for the time being (who hasn't pretended he has been injured) and hopefully Gray is really going to knuckle down this season.

Could be a hell of a lot worse

Drinkwater today talking about his reception when he comes on/starts against Leicester next week - funny how his injury has up and disappeared. It's a shame that this slight whimper of an exit will tarnish slightly the image of one of 'that team' from 2016.

Well first of all I think it was the correct thing to do to sell Drinkwater. Once he'd put in a transfer request the only thing was making sure we got a good fee and we negotiated well on this one. I also don't feel as bad about this transfer as I did the Kante one. DD has been with us for 5 years and contributed much to our elevation from the Championship and ultimate Premier League win. With Kante it felt a bit like we'd been used as a stepping stone despite considering that against his immeasurable contribution for one season.

I'm not as quick as others, however, to gloss over what DD has brought to the team. At his best he was our best midfielder and had industry and passing ability above our other midfielders (that's the ones I've seen and doesn't include Silva and Iborra). He could be a big miss for us.

For me it's all about the unknown. How will Silva and Iborra slot in to English football? Will it be Cambiasso or Inler? I'd agree that the skills of Drinkwater are more easily replaced than the unique skills of Kante, Vardy and Mahrez. It's also true that the 2015/16 vintage would be much harder to replace than what was offered last season. I will await to see whether we've done this effectively.

Agree with Joby and KTF. We all agree that Mahrez can't be replaced like for like.

However, unlike a Joby I don't believe DD can't be replaced easily. I think James has already replaced him and I'm hopeful Iborra will do so with even greater effect.

Yes at his finest, Drinkwater's range of passing and understanding with Mahrez and Vardy was far above what we've seen from James. But we can't forget that for every one of those games, he also had 3 or 4 where he had no influence on the game.

Without Kante he was half the player. So in that regard, he's gone to the right place to get the best out of himself. After his comments about being a fan of our club now, I wish him the best when he's not playing us.

Without Kante everyone looked half the player they where the season before.

Be interesting to see if Kante moves out & upwards again from Chelsea FC if they don't win anything this season, whether his partner being Drinkwater or A.N. Other.

Chelsea look a little bit in turmoil playthepitch. To me it appears that Abramovich is interfering and alienating the manager again.

Players are turning them down. And you don't turn down the champions without good reason.

Think Conte and Kante could be leaving!!!

I haven't commented on the transfer windows because we don't have Silva - yet. Do we know when FIFA will pronounce?

I'm sad to see Drinky go but understand him wanting to take his opportunity to test himself elsewhere and wish him all the best apart from against us of course. He was an essential cog in the title winning side, thriving alongside Kante. It will be interesting to see how he fares in a more possession based side.

The jury is of course out on our actual and prospective midfield replacements, neither of whom have PL experience. Time will tell how well they fit in.