Carsley: Ghana FA target Hudson-Odoi committed to England

by Staff Reporter

Saturday Oct 02, 2021. 13:00

Ghana Football Association (GFA) target Callum Hudson-Odoi’s international future remains uncertain amidst interest from England Under-21 head coach Lee Carsley.

The 20-year-old forward reportedly rejected an invite to the England under-21 camp as he was keen to focus on his Chelsea FC career during the international break in September 2021.

Hudson-Odoi, who was born in England to parents of Ghanaian descent, was on holiday in Ghana during pre-season where he held talks with Ghana President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Ghana Sports Minister Mustapha Ussif and GFA president Kurt Okraku.

However, Carsley has insisted nothing has changed with the London-born star as he looks to use him in the UEFA U21 EURO qualifiers.

“No intentions or suggestions were made in that regard [switching to Ghana], Callum is still committed to England and we look forward to having him back,” Carsley said on Ghana Soccer Net.

“Callum is a player that we really like. I have had some really good conversations with him and his advisor and Callum felt that it wasn’t the right time for him at the minute to come with England.

“He’s stayed back at Chelsea to work on his development there. I respected that decision and that was it really.”

Hudson-Odoi was part of the England squad which won the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup and he has three caps for the England senior national team.

However, the highly-rated player is still eligible for a switch of national associations provided he does not add the fourth cap for England.