Assessing Nottingham Forest star Callum Hudson Odoi's chances of England recall as Thomas Tuchel appointed
10/16/2024 03:42 AM
England have a new manager in Thomas Tuchel and for Nottingham Forest star Callum Hudson-Odoi that represents an intriguing time of things.
It wasn’t long ago that Hudson-Odoi was reportedly looking into pledging his allegiance to Ghana on the international stage.
The Forest star has played three games for England but as they were in friendly games, he can still swap and play for another country if he sees fit.
Hudson-Odoi signed for Forest for just £5 million and he’s revived his career in just over 12 months at the City Ground.
Now, Tuchel’s appointment as the replacement for Gareth Southgate will almost certainly offer Hudson-Odoi some food for thought.
Thomas Tuchel appointed England manager
The man who led Chelsea to a second Champions League title is now tasked with bringing a major tournament win to England for the first time since 1966.
Tuchel has a largely spectacular record in club football and he has to be considered an elite head coach.
At Chelsea, he oversaw 60 wins from 100 matches to finish with a win ratio of 60%, with 24 of the games he took charge of finishing in draws.
Tuchel also took PSG to the Champions League final for the only time in their history and knockout football appears to be his thing.
A few England players will be looking at the appointment and wondering what might be – and not just Hudson-Odoi.
Morgan Gibbs-White was called up for England duty last month and earned rave reviews for his cameo vs Republic of Ireland.
Elliot Anderson won the Player of the Match award for the England under-21s last night and he might knock on the door in future years too.
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Tuchel comments on Hudson-Odoi from 2021
These now look very intriguing and will undoubtedly get the tongues wagging.
In October 2021, Hudson-Odoi – now at Forest – was still trying to prove himself to Tuchel at Stamford Bridge.
He was largely playing either as a substitute or out of position as a wing-back under the German boss and his form dipped somewhat.
In February 2022, Hudson-Odoi would suffer a recurrence of a troublesome Achilles problem and that curtailed his progress a bit.
Tuchel admitted after a 7-0 win over Norwich, however, that he felt a little bit sorry for Hudson-Odoi given that he wasn’t often utilised in a position he was comfortable with.
He told The Standard: “We are aware that we are maybe a bit unfair when we ask him to play too often as a right-wing-back where he cannot show his full potential.
“We are aware of that so it’s always a mix and at the moment we think we’ve found a way to push him to the limited and this can change.”
How Hudson-Odoi felt about Tuchel decision at Chelsea
It’s fair to say that Hudson-Odoi was keen to get out of Chelsea and in 2022 he opted to sign for Bayer Leverkusen on loan for the 2022/23 campaign.
Following his departure, he made some comments about his time being passed from pillar to post in a number of positions under Tuchel.
He told The Athletic: “My mindset was, ‘I have to get out of there.’
“Not in a rude way, as in I don’t like the club or I don’t want to be at the club, nothing like that. But I needed to play football somewhere new. Start afresh.”
He was also quizzed on whether he saw himself playing as a wing-back – and again that was met with an emphatic response.
Hudson-Odoi continued: “Definitely not! At times, it was okay. But sometimes in my head, I’m thinking, ‘What am I doing? Why am I in this position? I’m defending more than I’m attacking’.
“I never argued; I just got on with it. But to get the best out of yourself, you have to play where you can feel most comfortable.”
Hudson-Odoi can still earn England recall with Forest form
It’s worth noting that despite the media comments from Tuchel and Hudson-Odoi, there is a clear indication that the German likes the Forest winger.
Hudson-Odoi was used 46 times by Tuchel at Chelsea and of all the managers he had at Chelsea, only Frank Lampard (52) picked him more times.
So, there is something there with Hudson-Odoi when it comes to Tuchel’s thinking and clearly the winger might be intrigued by this appointment.
Last season, Hudson-Odoi scored eight times for Forest as his goals helped the Reds remain as a Premier League club for another season.
With a wealth of attacking talent now in the England pool, Hudson-Odoi won’t find it easy to get back into the setup despite Tuchel’s appointment.
However, in the short term, the German might want a group of players he can trust and that might be one box that Hudson-Odoi does tick.
With Tuchel not taking over until January, Hudson-Odoi has a few months to get impressing his former boss.
Hopefully, this move can get the Forest man back in the goals this season as he aims to catch the eye of the former boss.
