The ex-Chelsea player was in attendance for City's 3-1 win over the Blues at the Etihad Stadium but left fans baffled when they noticed that his with sat among the home supporters.
Taking to social media to explain the decision, Drinkwater wrote on his Instagram story: "For the @Chelsea fans asking why I'm in the City end... I asked the club for tickets!?! I didn't receive any."
This was accompanied by a circus tent and a rolling eyes emoji, suggesting that he wasn't impressed with his old club.
However for fans, it was him who was less acting in a less than impressive way.
One Chelsea fan wrote: "Why would they give him tickets lol."
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A second said: "He took enough from the club. They gave him a nice retirement package."
A third wrote: "If he really wanted to support the club then I don't see any harm in him buying a ticket btw."
A fourth added: "Did him dirty.. Didn't do anything notable for the club."
Meanwhile a fifth wrote: "I wouldn't give him any tickets either. He can f*****g buy them with the wage he received."
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While Drinkwater is a former Chelsea player, he's not someone who is remembered all too fondly by supporters.
Having helped Leicester City to the Premier League title in 2016, the midfielder moved to Chelsea a year later for a fee worth £35million.
However he made just 23 appearances for the Blues over a five-year period before leaving for nothing at the end of his contract in 2022.
Since retiring last year the 34-year-old been working on other ventures but saw his restaurant business go bust in 2022.
His luck in the business world suffered further frustration when a 70 per cent share in a Manchester nightclub closed its doors last month.
Drinkwater is now working on a building site and shared a picture from his new role on Instagram, leading to criticism.
However the ex-midfielder bit back, saying: "Some of these messages, behave.
"I love being on site grafting! It's a choice."