Callum Hudson-Odoi has revealed it only took one conversation with Frank Lampard to convince him to sign a new Chelsea deal. The 19-year-old was heavily linked with a move to Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich in the summer before agreeing a new five-year contract at Stamford Bridge and says he definitely made the right decision.
The winger broke into the Blues side under Maurizio Sarri last season and did enough to earn his England senior debut only to have the campaign curtailed by a serious Achilles injury.
He missed the Europa League final and the Nations League finals as a result but has impressed since returning to fitness, earning a Three Lions recall for the forthcoming Euro 2020 qualifiers against Montenegro and Kosovo.
Things could have been different if the club had not appointed Lampard as Sarri’s successor. The youngster was frustrated with his lack of game-time and was pushing for a move to Bayern, with some reports claiming he even handed in a transfer request.
However that all changed when Lampard was appointed as the former Chelsea midfielder had to do little to convince Hudson-Odoi to stay put.
Asked how many conversations he had with Lampard before agreeing to sign, he replied: “One. “I can’t say exactly what he said but he just said he believes in me, he wants me to work hard and if I believe in myself then he believes in me and things will go well for me at this club. “I said from the start that I made the right decision to stay at Chelsea. I’ve been there all my life. I’ve loved the club from day one.”
Lampard has overseen a sea change in approach at Chelsea as, hamstrung with a FIFA transfer ban, he has turned to the youth team and academy products.
The early results have been impressive with Hudson-Odoi joining Fikayo Tomori and Tammy Abraham as young Blues players included in Gareth Southgate’s England squad.
Older Post
Clare backs Tigers new boy to shine
COMMENTS