Chelsea winger Hudson-Odoi could swap England for Ghana to play at World Cup 2022
The 21-year-old is considering his options at international level having not been considered for recent Three Lions squads, Ghana’s qualification for the 2022 World Cup was secured on March 29 after they beat Nigeria over two legs, The 21-year-old has not been in Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions squad for two-and-a-half years and has opted to snub recent call-ups to Lee Carsley’s Under-21s side.
Why is Hudson-Odoi considering a switch to Ghana?
Despite having represented England and having earned all three caps in competitive matches, Hudson-Odoi remains eligible to switch nations.
That comes after a FIFA rule change in September 2020 allowed players with no more than three caps to change, if they had earned those appearances before their 21st birthday.
Although born in London, Hudson-Odoi has dual nationality through his father Bismark who was a footballer in Ghana for Hearts of Oak.
He has toyed with the idea of making the switch, saying when last asked about it: “At the end of the day, we will wait until that time comes.”
Indeed, Hudson-Odoi was invited to meet President Nana Akufo-Addo and is understood to have had dialogue with the Ghanaian FA.
He has so far delayed the decision on his international future but the upcoming World Cup in Qatar is expected to be the turning point.
Is Southgate right not to select Hudson-Odoi?
Gareth Southgate has an embarrassment of riches in his England squad, particularly in wide areas.
He left out Manchester United duo Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford from his last squad, going with the likes of Phil Foden, Raheem Sterling and Jack Grealish instead.
Meanwhile, Hudson-Odoi has struggled to be a consistent starter in Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea squad since the German arrived in January 2021.
It followed a similar barren period under Frank Lampard after rupturing his Achilles tendon in 2019 after his senior international debut.
Hudson-Odoi has, however, taken on a more prominent role in the 2021-22 campaign and has been pushing for regular starts with the European champions.
His progress was derailed again in February as he had to manage a minor Achilles problem but he is currently back in training ahead of the final few weeks of the season.
