Chelsea coach, Thomas Tuchel has revealed that he has kept watch on the youngster, Callum Hudson-Odoi’s progress for two years since he was in charge of Paris Saint Germain. The German coach said how aware he was about his talent.
Having joined Chelsea after Frank Lampard got dismissed by the owner, Tuchel has given each and every minute to Hudson Odoi in his initial five games in Chelsea’s charge. The youngster has been mainly used as an attacking wing-back in the right flank but even he played in the more advanced position as well-like in their 1-0 victory over Barnsley in the FA Cup.
The England international has been performing at his best for the last five matches and Tuchel has cleverly used him in different positions to throw off the opponent. Throughout the match, Callum can be changing his position quite frequently and maintain his intensity of playing from the first until the game ends.
‘I became aware of Callum during my days at Paris,’ admitted Tuchel as per Official Chelsea website. ‘I’d say probably two years ago. His name popped up on our radar because, clearly, he had so much potential.
‘I’ve always liked Callum because of the personality he shows on the pitch. Now I’ve got to know him better, I can say he’s a really positive guy and he always has a smile on his face.
‘We like this a lot, his positive mentality and his positive attitude on the pitch. Of course, he is also very talented and we can see his ability to speed up the game with a high-intensity run. He also shows composure on the ball and, of course, he can score and assist.
‘He’s shown his ability at youth levels and then moving up into the Premier League. These are the steps he has to take into the adult game and the challenge for Callum now is to keep working hard, keep improving and become a regular and maintain a certain level all the time.
‘That’s the challenge for Callum and we will be by his side every step of the way. He’s made a very good start but he cannot rely only on match minutes, he must keep working hard and maintaining his high levels in training too. But he is doing really well and I’m very pleased with Callum.’
Tuchel praises his talent and admires how hard he works for the team. He knows Callum aims to become a starter at Chelsea and his performances recently have made a strong appeal in his favor as well. Against Barnsley, he was very essential to secure the three important points. Not only did he scored from Reece James’ pass but also made a goal-line save with a stretched header to prevent the ball from going in the net.
