After watching the Blues sail into the fifth round of the FA Cup with victory over Sheffield Wednesday, Gianfranco Zola says the Blues want Ghanaian- English born forward Callum Hudson-Odoi to stay at Stamford Bridge.
The assistant first team coach was on media duty following this evening’s 3-0 win, when a Willian brace sandwiched a fine strike from Hudson-Odoi.
Amid rumours the 18-year-old has handed in a transfer request, and with Blues fans having expressed their wish for him to remain in west London, Zola explained the situation from the management’s perspective.
‘We want him to stay, we were singing as well!’ he laughed.
‘I don’t know if he will stay. We want him to stay, he has a contract, we are playing him, we believe in what he can do for this team.
‘There are not many 18 year olds in Europe who are playing as much as he is in a big team. That shows we believe him, we think he can be an important player for us, so we will see what happens.
‘We can do as much as we can do. He has a lot of strong players around him but we are still finding space to play him.
‘If we played him it’s because yesterday in training his attitude was excellent. He really played well. He scored a fantastic goal in training yesterday too. He didn’t show any signs which is why he played today.’
Zola was asked if he can guarantee Hudson-Odoi won’t be sold this month
‘I’m not the club. I just work for the club. I can do as much as I can, but these are decisions that belong to me. There is certainly a good understanding between the club and the management, but I cannot say more than that at the end of the day.’
