Journo claims Fulham have ended interest in 22-year-old Chelsea forward

Journalist Tom Roddy confirms Fulham have pulled out of the race to sign Chelsea’s Callum Hudson-Odoi

According to The Times journalist Tom Roddy, Fulham have pulled out of the race to sign Chelsea’s forward Callum Hudson-Odoi, despite being favourites to sign the forward.

With Fulham withdrawing their bid to sign Hudson-Odoi, only Everton and Nottingham Forest are in the race to land the 22-year-old, who is open to leaving the West Londoners.

The forward verbally agreed to sign for the Craven Cottage outfit and was also willing to take a pay-cut to join Fulham, but now he will have to wait for offers from Forest and Everton as he is desperate to leave the Blues.

After Fulham confirmed the exit of Aleksandr Mitrovic to Saudi club Al Hilal for £46 million, they identified Hudson-Odoi as an ideal back-up but now it seems the winger will have to find other suitors.

The 22-year-old was on a season-long loan to Bayern Leverkusen, but failing to convince Xabi Alonso saw him return to Chelsea. At West London, he is deemed surplus to requirements after the club already sold the likes of Christian Pulisc and Hakim Ziyech.

Hudson-Odoi could face a tough challenge to fit into Chelsea’s starting line-up, as the Blues are already stacked with enough players on both wings. We have Mykhaylo Mudryk, Raheem Sterling and Noni Madueke in these positions while Ian Maatsen can also play as a left-winger.

Hudson-Odoi, 22, still has the best years of his career ahead of him to reignite his career and fulfil his immense potential. Chelsea don’t seem to be the perfect club for him to grow in his career because in all honesty, he just hasn’t reached the level we demand from a regular starter right now.

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All parties will benefit from his transfer to another team, and the Blues could get at least something in transfer fees from his departure, given his contract expires in 2024. A move to a Premier League club such as Everton or Forest, which would be a ‘downgrade’ in the books of some, could at least give him a chance at first-team football.