Callum Hudson-Odoi Reportedly Submits Transfer Request to Leave Chelsea

Callum Hudson-Odoi has reportedly informed Chelsea he wants to sign for Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich by submitting a transfer request.

Kaveh Solhekol of Sky Sports News reported 18-year-old Hudson-Odoi, who is rumoured to have recently been the subject of several bids from Bayern, made the request to the Blues on Saturday:

While Hudson-Odoi appears prepared to his force his way out of west London, and Bayern are willing to pay as much as £40 million to sign the 18-year-old, according to MailOnline's Rob Draper.

Chelsea are said to have offered the academy graduate a new contract paying £80,000 weekly and are reluctant to let him leave..

However, the list of suitors is reportedly growing. Draper wrote Bayern's Bundesliga rivals RB Leipzig are "offering Chelsea £20m but crucially the opportunity of a buy-back clause."

The latter deal could be more palatable for Chelsea, who may rue losing such a gifted youngster without the option to re-sign him at some point.

Hudson-Odoi has largely only featured in cup competitions for Chelsea. Even so, the youngster has made the most of his opportunities, particularly in the UEFA Europa League:

He also supplied a pair of assists when holders Chelsea beat Championship side Nottingham Forest 2-0 in the FA Cup third round. The same competition could be the stage for his final appearance with the club in Sunday's fourth-round tie against Sheffield Wednesday at Stamford Bridge.

Getting minutes is a daunting challenge for Hudson-Odoi at Chelsea, where established names Eden Hazard, Willian and Pedro are all ahead of him in Sarri's best XI.

It's why JJ Bull of the Daily Telegraph believes Hudson-Odoi needs to move on to fulfil his obvious potential:

"Hudson-Odoi could learn more theory and develop better technical skills by training alongside Eden Hazard and Willian under the coaching of a top-tier manager like Maurizio Sarri, but the key trend among players who get to the top level is that they have played competitive football during their late teens."

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Bull also highlighted Jadon Sancho and Reiss Nelson, two young English players who swapped Manchester City and Arsenal (on loan), respectively, for life in the German top flight. Their performances for Borussia Dortmund and Hoffenheim endorse his view that "young players are given more chances to play abroad."

Chelsea don't have a good track record of getting the most from the many gifted young players the club has signed or developed in recent years. Both Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku had to move for more football, while youth-team graduates such as 23-year-old Ruben Loftus-Cheek remain on the fringes of the first team.

Hudson-Odoi seems in no mood to suffer the latter's fate and is already taking steps to accelerate his development, even if it comes away from the Blues.