Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
George Flood

Callum Hudson-Odoi addresses early Chelsea return rumours amid Bayer Leverkusen loan stint

Callum Hudson-Odoi has seemingly not ruled out a potential mid-season return to Chelsea.

The winger is currently on loan in the Bundesliga, where he has thus far made six appearances for a Bayer Leverkusen side struggling badly under Swiss coach Gerardo Seoane, mired in the relegation zone with just one win to their name so far this season.

Hudson-Odoi’s move to BayArena was agreed for the entirety of the 2022/23 campaign, though crucially included the option for Chelsea to recall the player early during the January transfer window.

And while the 21-year-old’s Blues future under former boss Thomas Tuchel appeared bleak, he now has the chance for a potential clean slate under new manager Graham Potter.

Chelsea have the option to recall Callum Hudson-Odoi from Bayer Leverkusen in January (Getty Images)

There have been suggestions that Potter could exercise that recall in Hudson-Odoi’s loan agreement in the New Year in order to properly assess the player and possibly reintegrate him back into his first-team squad at Stamford Bridge.

And while Hudson-Odoi does not seem to have closed the door on a premature return to Chelsea, he insists he is only focusing on impressing at Leverkusen for now with everything else out of his hands.

“It’s not up to me, I don’t know… I can only do what I can do now, give everything that I can,” he said, per transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano.

“We don’t know what’ll happen between January, or from now until the end of the season, so we just wait and see.”

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.