ODOI’S THE HEAD BOY FOR SARRI
MAURIZIO SARRI had insisted that he now rates Callum Hudson-Odoi in the same bracket as stars like Willian and Pedro.
The Italian said on Monday that he did not want the exciting
18-year-old to leave English football and join Bayern Munich – who last night made their fourth offer for the winger.
And at Wembley, the teenager gave us a tantalising glimpse of why one of Europe’s biggest clubs covet him so much.
The statement Sarri made, just hours after that
£35m bid came in, by naming the teenager in his line up for the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Tottenham at Wembley, was a significant one.
Pledged
Bayern’s offer matches what Chelsea want – but the Germans are offering only £15m up front, with the rest of the fee in instalments.
Chelsea, if they were to sell, want the fee in full.
Sarri and Chelsea do not want to lose one of their most promising prospects. But Hudson-Odoi wants regular football.
The youngster, Sarri pledged, is now ready for the big games. This then, was his moment.
Hudson-Odoi has seen the impact Jadon Sancho has made after opting to leave Manchester City and join Borussia Dortmund, and, keen on the idea of the Bundisliga, is yet to sign the five-year deal he has been offered.
Before last night he had just 42 minutes of Premier League action, 90 minutes in the FA Cup – and 215 in the Europa League.
Hudson-Odoi has been at Chelsea since he was seven, won the FA Youth Cup, and was in England’s Under 17 World Cup winning team in 2017. He started on the right at Wembley. Early on he drifted past Danny Rose, but shot straight at Paulo Gazzaniga.
Then there was a little dart inside, and a pass to Eden Hazard, whose shot was saved – but as Harry Kane put away his penalty at the other end, the need for the youngster to produce some magic increased.
There were times when his naivety showed – but there were others when he glided past defenders like they were not there.
One curled shot flashed over. Then there was a cross that deflected off Rose and Gazzaniga had to leap and somehow tip the ball onto the underside of the bar and out.
It was a fluke – but the closest Chelsea had come to a goal.
Switched
Sarri had insisted that Hudson-Odoi had improved defensively, but he was caught napping a couple of times when Rose bombed forward.
The problem for the youngster was that Chelsea were again playing without an orthodox centre forward. So when he beat his man he had no one to aim at.
But Hudson-Odoi was switched to the left when Willian went off, his sheer presence a worry to Spurs.
The youngster was probably Chelsea’s most dangerous player.
If he forces a departure to Germany in the next three weeks it could be another one they regret.