Loftus-Cheek and Hudson-Odoi shining in training and physically peaking
Both players have a point to prove this season and have made the most of pre-season so far
I have to be very careful here trying not to over-hype too soon, because as you probably all know by now, these are two of my favourite Chelsea players.
I’ll explain why first other than the fact they both adore the club and have been here since the age of 8…
With Ruben, it’s his unique style of play and ability to make things happen that I enjoy. The way he glides with the ball making defenders bounce off him is majestic. When he is on form (England World Cup 2018), there aren’t many better all-round midfielders than Ruben, opponents are literally scared stiff of him.
With Cal, I have links, as you’ve probably guessed by now, but he is a player who isn’t just about the skill and direct wing play, he is also a very good passer of the ball and has great vision. He’s an all-round creator and again, on his day he is a frightening player when going at defenders.
And I am pleased to report, both of these players are showing signs of being back to their physical and confident best in pre-season so far.
Both players suffered with serious achilles injuries and had to rebuild the muscle in their legs and retrain themselves how to run with pace again and off the mark.
Particularly with Loftus-Cheek, his confidence also took a whack. Hudson-Odoi, it was more about trying too hard to impress in the cameo roles he was getting.
But this season, the gloves are off, the shackles have been released, and both players are showing signs of being back to their best.
Hudson-Odoi has been direct, creative but perhaps most importantly he has been finishing chances. He has been scoring for fun in training matches.
The best thing for Callum is he has been playing in his preferred left side attacking position, and that’s where his goals came from. I firmly believe that if he gets a run of say 5 games playing on the left, he will prove his worth and nail down that spot as his own.
Chelsea play Bournemouth tonight in a pre-season friendly and both are pretty much guaranteed to start, I hope they can show what I am saying here in the match tonight, because it’s clear for everyone to see in training so far, especially Thomas Tuchel, who has been VERY impressed with both players.
Tuchel has told Hudson-Odoi not to hide anymore this season and show his best and what he can do, and for Callum, those words have been massively motivating.
The most important thing for him is, he has his explosive pace back off the mark. And the most important thing for Ruben is, his confidence is back and he is playing with swagger and without fear.
He assumes he will be part of Tuchel’s plans this season because as of now, he has not even been thinking about a move away so until/unless he is told different, he plans with Chelsea this season.
Simon Phillips