Callum Hudson-Odoi’s injury is as bad as feared. The Chelsea winger is due to miss at least six months which raises many questions with few answers.
Regardless of how most feel about this season, common ground could often be found on Callum Hudson-Odoi. Chelsea had desperately wanted the academy to gets its chance and finally, in the form of the young winger, it started to do just that.
But now Hudson-Odoi has likely ruptured his achilles. The recovery time on that is at least six months and usually more. That is the type of injury that cannot be rushed back from and it is hard to tell how well the player comes out the other end of it. In both the short and long term, this injury could be disastrous.
In the short term, Chelsea is going to be without Hudson-Odoi for at least the remainder of the season and the start of the next. For now, that means Eden Hazard, Willian, Pedro, and possibly Ruben Loftus-Cheek will have to hold the wings for at least five more games in the coming weeks. That is doable but obviously not idea.
Further out is the transfers ban and the start of next season which Hudson-Odoi will likely miss. If Chelsea has a transfer ban, it is hard to tell exactly how the Blues will operate around the injury. Hazard is likely to leave but now Willian and Pedro could both stay with Christian Pulisic supplementing the wings.
Without a ban, Chelsea will surely be tempted into a new winger now, especially if Hazard leaves. An older winger seems like a short term solution which Chelsea is traditionally bad at. A young winger would raise doubts about Hudson-Odoi’s spot when he returns.
But most importantly is Hudson-Odoi himself. When he returns to full fitness, it will be deep into next season. This is the type of injury that can slow a player and as a winger that will hurt his development. Not only that, but at his age he needs a great deal of playing time to improve. Missing a minimum of six months will be damaging if he is not treated properly.
Hudson-Odoi would not be the first with an injury like this however. Ruben Loftus-Cheek has missed time with injury before and has come out on the right side of things. Kurt Zouma is returning from his ACL injury now and is seemingly even better than before. Hazard and Cesar Azpilicueta have had long term injuries early in their careers.
Make no mistake, this injury is bad news in the short term and could be in the long term. But Hudson-Odoi is a fighter and has gotten this far. If Chelsea takes good care of his recovery and he uses his support network at the club, he can come out and pick up where he left off. The kid has shown all the talent to be one of the best in the game. An injury will not stop him now.