Chelsea’s current manager Frank Lampard, who took the job over at Stamford Bridge quite recently, has said that young winger Callum Hudson-Odoi is close to signing a new contract. The new contract will see him stay put at Stamford Bridge for a significant amount of time, ending all speculations of a potential move away to Bayern Munich, with the Bundesliga holders looking to take him away to the Allianz Arena. The 18 year old player currently has his contract running until 2020. He had been closely linked with a move to Bayern Munich last January but will be plying his trade at the West London club in the next term.
According to BBC, Lampard said, “If he had agreed then that would mean he had signed and we’re not quite there yet.” The new manager added, “But it is very clear that the club are working towards that. I think talks have moved on very well in the last week or two, hence why the headlines came out, but it is not done yet.”
The former Chelsea star also said, “The one thing that is clear for me is I know I want to keep him here and the club wants to keep him because he’s a player we cherish. He is come through our academy, he is the present and the future of this club, so we are doing everything we can to get there.”
The England international is currently out of action owing to an Achilles injury which he endured in April. The 18 year old winger is expected to be back in the squad by September, as the report suggests. He missed the whole pre-season, which was a fair one for the Blues as far as the performance is concerned, lifting the Rakuten Cup by beating the champions of Spain, Barcelona by a score-line of 2-1.
The key factor here is the fact that the Londoners need to keep hold of all of their talented stars, as they can’t sign any more at present and will want to tie them down to new deals. Hudson Odoi is one of the key players that the club has at present and he can be a long-term asset to the side, if he is given more chances.
The England international was impressive in the previous campaign under Sarri, though injuries halted his overall progress in the playing eleven. Despite that, the change now in the managerial head of the team, would mean that he can make a larger impact under the guidance of his compatriot Lampard.
Further, the absence of Eden Hazard will mean that some of the other players will have to take more responsibility, till Pulisic settles into the unforgiving style of the Premier League. Hudson-Odoi can be one such player who will be expected to make a major impact and get some crucial goals for his team, while creating changes upfront.
Willian is another key player, who will be expected to do well in the upcoming campaign and produce some goals, though whether he is able to live up to expectations or not, remains to be seen. Things are quite complicated at present and these issues need to be sorted out and fast.
It will surely be quite an interesting season ahead and let’s see what happens now, with the team now focused on winning more titles under the new boss.
