Callum Hudson-Odoi’s last chance saloon at Chelsea
Chelsea fans have been hearing the name Callum Hudson-Odoi for the better part of four years. A big reason for that being that he was tipped to be one of the youngsters to break into the first team when the likes of Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham were trying to make their name on loan. The midfielder was shining at Vitesse Arnhem, while the striker was languishing at Swansea City. Abraham managed only eight goals in thirty-nine appearances for Swansea as they got relegated while Mount appeared in the Eredivisie team of the year and was Vitesse Arnhem’s player of the year. Hudson-Odoi was however the talk of the town as Antonio Conte slowly integrated him into the first team.
It’s best not to talk about how that season ended. Despite Chelsea beating Manchester United 1-0 to win the FA Cup, the team finished fifth in the Premier League. The club thus failed to qualify for the Champions League and had to settle for the Europa League. Meanwhile, in one of the most bizarre events in the club’s history, Conte ended up getting the sack as he was conducting the pre-season for the 2018/19 campaign. Maurizio Sarri replaced his countryman at the dugout, and it seemed to be the perfect Chance for Hudson-Odoi to claim a spot in the first team. Conte was known for his rigid brand of football which saw players learn movements by heart with very little room for creativity. Sarri on the other hand was regarded to be a tactical genius who coached an attractive and proactive brand of football which would be perfect for Hudson-Odoi.
Armed with explosive pace and a bottomless bag of tricks, Hudson-Odoi is a right-winger who likes to go past players by making them look either slow, incapable, or both. He can also play on the other wing as well. There were rumors that Sarri wanted to convert Eden Hazard into a false nine as he did with Dries Mertens. This would have opened up a spot for Hudson-Odoi. The then 17-year-old Englishman was supposed to play the Lorenzo Insigne role, cutting in from the right to score or create goals. He started Chelsea’s loss to Manchester City in the Community Shield but then didn’t get a chance as Pedro and Willian were preferred on the right, with Eden Hazard dominating the left flank.
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Come January that year, Bayern Munich bid £35m for the player. At this point of the season, he had only played a couple of Europa League matches and FA Cup games to go with the 42 minutes Sarri had afforded him in the Premier League. Naturally, his head was turned as he would have gotten more game time with the Germans as the heir to their then two aging wingers Arjen Robben and Frank Ribery. He officially handed in a transfer request which was denied without a second thought. Fans started openly questioning why Sarri didn’t play him more and, perhaps bowing to this pressure, the Italian fielded him more often. However, the youngster got injured in April, effectively ruling him out for the season.
The following season saw CHO sign a new five-year contract under Frank Lampard and managed to play 1609 minutes spread over 35 appearances. He bettered that number last season with 1,848 minutes in 37 appearances. Tuchel’s arrival saw him thrown into the wing-back position, and he performed admirably. He started the first three games under the German tactician, but then seemed to falter as James made that position his as the season came to a close.
Should Chelsea be looking to be a more attacking threat, Hudson-Odoi could feature regularly in this position. He is, however, comfortable as one of the two tens, tucked in behind the striker number. As things stand, he would have to battle Mount and Kai Havertz for those positions, not to forget Christian Pulisic and Hakim Ziyech. The wing back position may be his best chance, but his defensive output has to increase as well. He seems to have to compete with, among others, the now healthy Dujon Sterling. It is always nice to see a lad from the academy become a mainstay of the first team, but Tuchel speaks just one language: commitment.
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He won’t play Hudson-Odoi just because he is an academy player, but rather because of what he brings to the table. This could either be the season that makes Hudson-Odoi a Chelsea superstar, or one that sees him labeled a child prodigy who failed to live up to the hype.