Callum Hudson-Odoi was the star youth for Chelsea just over a year ago. A revolution later, he still can be, but he will have to take his chances.
It was clear in the 2018/2019 preseason that Callum Hudson-Odoi was something special. He was easily the best player that presesaon, yet he barely featured in the first half of the season. It took a transfer request (because at the time, there was no youth pathway at Chelsea) and the board literally ordering Maurizio Sarri to use him for the English winger to see the pitch. He did not let the expectations down. Injury pulled him off of cloud nine and largely hindered him throughout this 2019/2020 season. What questions should be asked before the new season?
1. Are the injury issues behind him?
Both Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ruben Loftus-Cheek suffered similar (albeit different in severity) injuries at almost the same time. Much can be said about the physio department and the management for that but what was always more important was A: how long it would take them to recover and B: the effect it would have on them long term.
The injury was sure to steal pace from both players but such a long lay off can steal a great many other things as well. Beyond that, it takes a long time, even after returning to fitness, to get used to the pace of the game again.
That was very much seen with both Loftus-Cheek and Hudson-Odoi. The English winger had a less severe injury and a shorter layoff, but he never truly found his feet in the 19/20 season. That is not surprising, but the criticism of him both from Chelsea fans and rival fans, was largely unjust due to what Hudson-Odoi had to fight against.
Hudson-Odoi will not be able to lean on that any longer. With all the time off and not one but two wingers departing, the path is clear for Hudson-Odoi to show what he has got. If his injury issues are not behind him, then he needs to do what he can to put them in the rear view.
2018/2019 should have been “Hudson-Odoi’s season”. 2019/2020 should have been too had he not been injured. 2020/2021 will have to be his year now. The stage is set for the young English winger.
2. Is he a better winger or inside forward?
Maurizio Sarri liked one winger to be inverted or act as an inside forward driving towards goal. He wanted the other to be more of a traditional winger stretching the play. Frank Lampard, meanwhile, is fond of both of his wingers tucking in for the majority of the play while occasionally going wide as the situation demands.
Both managers had the same hiccup about Hudson-Odoi; is he a better winger or an inside forward? The answer is “yes” but that is the lazy explanation. The real explanation is a little more complicated.
As an inside forward (usually on the left), Hudson-Odoi is able to take advantage of his solid dribbling skills as he drives at the opposition defense. It also puts him on to his strongest side (though he is basically two footed) for a shot. The main draw backs are that dribbling and cutting in to shoot are both zero sum games. Hudson-Odoi either scores or wastes a chance. He either breaks through on the dribble or is dispossessed.
On the wing (usually the right), Hudson-Odoi is able to avoid a direct conflict with the opposition defense. Out wide, he almost always has a fullback/wingback to play off of directly which is a good use of his movement and passing. He is surely not the best crosser in the squad, but he is good at it and unafraid to whip the ball into the box. In addition, being naturally wide allows him more time to reach his full sprint on through balls. The main downside to this is that it makes him less involved in the game as a whole and he has a tendency to drift out of matches when playing wider.
The main competition for Hudson-Odoi in both roles is Christian Pulisic who has almost identical variables to work with. Pulisic is also able to play inverted on the left and wide on the right in near equal measure, but playing the American and the Englishman together always ensures that they are in one role.
The arrival of Hakim Ziyech, assuming he does play wide, further muddles this as both Pulisic and Hudson-Odoi will be inverted most of the time on the left. Lampard does not mind that given his tactics but it does tend to make Chelsea rather narrow and stuck in traffic.
How Hudson-Odoi is used throughout the season will be an interesting thing to keep an eye on. He is equally adept at both and both have their benefits and draw backs, but ultimately Lampard will need to settle on a solution.
3. Will this be the season where he finally becomes the star that was promised?
It was mentioned earlier that 18/19 really should have been Hudson-Odoi’s season. Injury stole most of 19/20 from him, but the lay off before the final third of the season should have given him time to recover and a chance to show his ability. Off the field issues may have delayed that and it would have been silly to say the 19/20 season should have been Hudson-Odoi’s regardless.
But the 20/21 season will have no asterisks (at least not at the moment). Willian and Pedro are both gone. Even with Hakim Ziyech joining, Chelsea will only have two true “wingers” in Pulisic and Hudson-Odoi. The Englishman should be relied on much more this season and it is time for him to truly announce himself to the world as a star instead of just another kid.
While Hudson-Odoi was out injured, the youth revolution went down. A player who submitted a transfer request because Chelsea had no pathway for their youth or a manager that cared suddenly returned to a world where the exact opposite was true. Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham, Reece James, Fikayo Tomori, and Billy Gilmour all put their stamps on to the season in varying degrees. But before the youth revolution and before any of those players were finally given a chance, Hudson-Odoi was seen as the crown jewel of the academy.
He still could be and this season will sort that out. With Pulisic in fantastic form and Ziyech sure to join and make his mark, it will not always be straight forward for the winger. But when he plays, he has to show all that promise he showed back in the 18/19 preseason. The injury issues and transfer business have to be set aside. Now it is all on Hudson-Odoi to show he can be the man when called.
What questions do you think need to be asked about Hudson-Odoi before next season? Let us know in the comments and on Twitter!