‘I’m excited’ – Hudson-Odoi speaks after joining Bayer Leverkusen

Callum Hudson-Odoi says he is delighted to have moved to Bayer Leverkusen – and his departure from Chelsea owed a lot to Kai Havertz.

Hudson-Odoi has joined the German club on a season-long loan deal, although the Blues reportedly have the option to recall him in January. The 21-year-old winger has been an unused substitute in each of Chelsea’s last three Premier League matches, having slipped down the pecking order under Thomas Tuchel.

He has 16 goals and 22 assists in 126 appearances across all competitions for Chelsea since emerging from the club’s academy. However, regular game time has been hard to come by – he started just 11 league matches last season and that is the reason behind his move to Bayer Leverkusen, who won the race for his services ahead of 19 other clubs.

“I’m definitely excited. I think it’s a new experience for me – I haven’t been anywhere else but Chelsea,” Hudson-Odoi told the club Website. “So coming here, I’m delighted to be here and I can’t wait to get started with the boys, get going and hopefully do well.

“The project [is attractive]. I said to the family that I want to go out there and make sure that I’m playing football and get the opportunity to play in front of great fans. It’s massive for me to come here.”

Chelsea are still chasing Barcelona forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Everton winger Anthony Gordon ahead of Thursday’s transfer deadline. Their potential arrivals would have meant even less game time for Hudson-Odoi, who remains under contract with the Blues until June 2024.

After hearing about Leverkusen’s interest, Hudson-Odoi spoke with his Chelsea teammate Havertz, who made 150 appearances for the Bundesliga side before joining Chelsea in a £70million transfer last summer. “He [Haverz] told me it’s amazing, obviously, that everyone around that he’s been with the past years have been amazing for him,” Hudson-Odoi added. “He enjoyed every moment of it and he said you’ll love it over there – just go, do you and be confident and everything will go well.”