Danny Drinkwater: Why I’m walking away from football (E222)
The High Performance Podcast
High Performance
4.8 • 4.7K Ratings
🗓️ 30 October 2023
⏱️ 74 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Danny Drinkwater joins us on High Performance, taking this opportunity to announce his retirement from professional football. After an almost 20 year career, Danny takes some time to look back on his accomplishments, greatest lessons and biggest challenges.
After rising through the Youth Academy at Manchester United, Danny played for some of the country’s biggest clubs, including Chelsea, Aston Villa, and Leicester City. He takes Jake and Damian through his football career; from sitting on the bench at Manchester United aged 18, to being a key part of Leicester City’s Premier League winning squad. He shares the emotional rollercoaster of winning the Premier League, as well as the painful moment his Euro's opportunity was taken away. Having worked with legendary figures like Cristiano Ronaldo, Sir Alex Ferguson and Claudio Ranieri, Danny reflects on how they inspired and challenged him, both in his career and personal life.
Danny delves into what he believes makes a great football manager, emphasising the significance of personal management to bring out the best in players and build team momentum. They also discuss Danny’s difficult reality with mental health struggles, including dealing with rejection after new offers failed to materialise. Reflecting on his lowest point when he was arrested for drink-driving in 2019, Danny highlights the importance of mental health care and finding practical solutions to unhappiness.
This is a conversation about personal growth, overcoming the darkest moments and moving to a brighter future.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | For so long many of you have been asking for more from the high performance podcast |
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| 0:13.1 | exclusive code HP app for exclusive content untold stories and things you won't see or hear |
| 0:20.2 | anywhere else. Check it out right now, the high performance podcast app. |
| 0:25.8 | Hi there, you're listening to high performance, the award-winning podcast that unlocks the minds of |
| 0:31.6 | some of the most fascinating people on the planet. I'm Jake Cumpfrey and alongside Professor Damien |
| 0:37.2 | Hughes we learn from the stories, successes and struggles of our guests, allowing us all to |
| 0:42.8 | explore, be challenged and to grow. Here's what's coming up today. You know careers are careers, |
| 0:50.2 | I mean, football's a short one and they do come to an end but not being able to like kind of |
| 0:55.6 | go through it, how you'd want to go through it, it's kind of tough to take as well as both. |
| 1:00.0 | We won the championship, we nearly got relegate this season after, first season in the preamp |
| 1:05.1 | and then the second year in the preamp we're going on with it. Like if you look at them as three |
| 1:09.2 | years in football it's just untouchable, I don't think you're going to get that and even the year |
| 1:13.9 | after that we've got to the quite finals of the Champions League, it's not something that happens |
| 1:18.0 | all the time that and I love football at Leicester and I've never got it back since I left there |
| 1:23.4 | obviously like I'm sobering up and I'm in this cell and I'm thinking this is not you at all, |
| 1:30.4 | it's not you as a person it's not how you want to be as a person like you need to get older |
| 1:34.6 | yourself here. It's the darkest I've ever felt 100% it was almost like drowning a bit and you forgot |
| 1:43.0 | to swim. Why am I here? I'm not even playing. So today we welcome a Premier League winner who |
| 1:50.4 | story is about so much more than just lifting that trophy. Danny Drinkwater is one of the most |
| 1:56.0 | talked about and controversial players of the last few years yet today he tells you his story |
... |
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