Callum Hudson-Odoi has completed a permanent transfer to Nottingham Forest, ending his 16-year association with Chelsea.
WEBWIRE – Friday, September 1, 2023
The 22-year-old spent last season on loan in Germany at Bayer Leverkusen but now returns to the Premier League with Steve Coopers side.
Hudson-Odoi came through the Chelsea Academy – where he was highly successful – and made his senior debut in an FA Cup win in 2018 aged 17, with Premier League action following soon after and his first goal arriving in the next season in a Europa League win over PAOK.
The winger was part of the Chelsea side that lifted the Champions League in 2020/21, although he was an unused substitute in Porto having come on in the FA Cup final defeat against Leicester the week before.
Often deployed as a wing-back by previous head coach Thomas Tuchel, it was in that role that Hudson-Odoi played when we won the UEFA Super Cup in 2021, defeating Villarreal on penalties.
In February 2022, it was Callums cross that was headed into the Palmeiras net by Romelu Lukaku for our opener in the FIFA Club World Cup final, a 2-1 win securing the trophy for the first time in the clubs history. Due to injury and then the Bundesliga loan, it proved to be his penultimate Chelsea game.
Over the course of his Chelsea career, he netted 16 times in 126 games with 60 of those being substitute appearances.
We thank Callum for his long service for the club and the good times we enjoyed together. We wish him well for the future.