Giroud praises ‘humble’ Hudson-Odoi as winger stays coy on chances of starting Carabao Cup final

Olivier Giroud hailed ‘humble’ Callum Hudson-Odoi as the talented Chelsea teenager remained coy when asked if he had forced his way into the starting line-up for Sunday’s Carabao Cup final.

Maurizio Sarri’s side take on Manchester City – who beat them 6-0 in the Premier League just a few weeks ago – at Wembley Stadium this weekend with Hudson-Odoi’s latest performance aiding his case of a rare start. 

Chelsea have endured a tough few weeks but temporarily restored a feel-good factor with a 3-0 win over Swedish minnows Malmo in the Europa League.  

Callum Hudson-Odoi was described as ‘humble’ by team-mate Olivier Giroud on Thursday

The 18-year-old played down suggestions he had merited a start in Sunday’s Carabo Cup final

Hudson-Odoi rounded off an encouraging performance with a goal in a 3-0 win over Malmo

Giroud eased growing Chelsea nerves on the night with a simple tap-in for the opening goal before Hudson-Odoi capped off a fine individual display with a goal after Ross Barkley’s free-kick made it 2-0. 

But when quizzed by BT Sport after the win as to whether his performance is enough to see him retain a starting spot at the national stadium next, Hudson-Odoi played talk down.

‘I am happy with the result today first of all, all the boys worked hard,’ the talented teenager said. 

Hudson-Odoi hailed the squad’s mentality in what has been a difficult few weeks at the club

‘Our mentality was strong, we knew they were going to come out fast, so we paced ourselves and deserved the win we got today.

‘I don’t know (if I have done enough). Obviously today’s’ performance for the team was very good, hopefully I did well and made an impact on the game as well.’

Giroud could barely keep a straight face as Hudson-Odoi concluded his answer, joking that the teenager is ‘so humble’. 

While the 5-1 aggregate win over Malmo ensured safe passage through to the last-16 of the Europa League, for Giroud, the win restored much-needed confidence ahead of Sunday’s final.

‘We needed some confidence back, that’s why we needed a good win tonight and especially to reassure ourselves defensively, with this clean sheet it’s good,’ the French striker said. 

Giroud got Chelsea started on the night with a close-range finish to calm nerves from fans

‘We are strong defensively and have been efficient up front. Now we can focus on the next game.

‘We were expecting (Malmo) to press us a bit high. It was difficult for us to find the solutions. The manager said we needed to play quickly. 

‘That’s what we’ve done second half. We knew that they’re going to be a bit tired in the second half so that’s why we pushed and stepped up.’