Callum Hudson-Odoi has hinted at a possible switch to represent Ghana at international level in the future despite being capped three times at senior level by England.
The 20-year-old made his senior debut for England as a substitute against Czech Republic in 2019, before making his first start a few days later against Montenegro.
However, Hudson-Odoi is eligible to play for Ghana, where he is currently on holiday, through his father, and the Chelsea youngster has refused to rule out changing his allegiance.
‘I think obviously when you’re young, you have the opportunity to play for England throughout all the years, from under 15 to under 16 all the way up,’ Hudson-Odoi said, as reported by Joy Sports.
‘When they obviously gave me the opportunity to come I was in the country already. It’s something that I already had in my mind, set on already playing for England.’
‘So it was the thing obviously choosing Ghana or England, and at the end of the day I said I always had the right people around me who always advise me – what’s right, what’s wrong. England came and I said ‘Yeah, let me go and play for my country.
‘But I said Ghana is my home as well, so we’ll see, we’ll see. You’ll never know.’
FIFA rules state that Hudson-Odoi would be able to represent Ghana in the future, as he has not played more than three senior matches for England.
Those games all came before he turned 21 as is required, but he would be required to wait to make an application until three years after his last appearance for England.
That came on November 17 in 2019, so theoretically Hudson-Odoi could make the application on the same date in 2022, which would be shortly before the World Cup got underway.
The forward failed to nail down a regular place in the Chelsea team under Thomas Tuchel last season, completing 90 minutes in the league just once – in the German’s first match in charge against Wolves in January.
As recently as the start of the year, Hudson-Odoi was voicing his desire to force his way into Gareth Southgate’s Euros squad, something he was ultimately unsuccessful in doing.
‘100 per cent. It’s always been on my mind,’ he told Sky Sports when asked in January was he thinking about the Euros.
‘I want to get back into the squad and go with them to the tournament. You take it game by game and day by day.
‘You’ve just got to keep doing what you’re doing, and keep improving. But yes, the Euros are definitely on my mind.’
