Bayer Leverkusen closing in on Chelsea’s Hudson-Odoi
Chelsea are willing to sanction a loan exit for star winger Callum Hudson-Odoi, with the latest reports suggesting he is a step away from a move to Bayer Leverkusen.
The 21-year-old, has yet to feature for Thomas Tuchel’s side this season, and has been pushed to the peripheries of the squad. Leverkusen are frontrunners in a race that has seen several clubs compete for his signature, implying just how much planning has gone into this potential transfer.
Whilst game time is a priority without a doubt for both Chelsea and the player, it remains to be seen whether there will be any buy clauses inserted into the deal. Among the host of clubs attracted to Hudson-Odoi were Newcastle United, Southampton and Borussia Dortmund.
It’s been suggested that Todd Boehly personally requested Hudson-Odoi to consider a loan and not anything permanent. Unlike other prodigies from Cobham, the Englishman was quickly drafted into the Chelsea setup and as a result, has accumulated 126 appearances for the Blues.
Many eyebrows were raised when he didn’t even make the match day team that narrowly beat Everton 1-0 in the squad’s first Premier League fixture. With Hakim Ziyech touted to follow the already departed Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner out of Chelsea, those doubts grow bigger.
Recent links with a big-money move for Anthony Gordon, who has less experience and isn’t as big of a goal threat as Hudson-Odoi, being more of a playmaker than someone who darts into the box or runs at defenders, have divided opinion amongst the fanbase.
In fact, one could argue the Blues need his tricky, direct style of play when goals have been hard to come by. They didn’t find the back of the net in the 3-0 demolition at the hands of Leeds United, and won courtesy of a Jorginho penalty on opening day.
History suggests Hudson-Odoi has been instrumental whenever he’s gotten a run of games, as seen in Chelsea’s 7-0 win over Norwich City last season and a famous European night at Stamford Bridge that saw them obliterate Juventus 4-0. Of course, he netted two well-taken goals in both outings.
A troublesome Achilles injury slowed his progress as well. When he’s on, Hudson-Odoi, from left wing, can be one of the most devastating young players around. Perhaps, it could be time for Tuchel to give him a run of games on that side before it’s too late.
Chelsea, meanwhile, continue their pursuit of Wesley Fofana and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as defensive and attacking reinforcements. They are up next against under-fire Leicester City on Saturday, August 27.
-Akarshak Roy
Twitter: @RoyAkarshak
Photo: Дмитрий Пукалик. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.