Callum Hudson-Odoi could have edged closer to a Chelsea exit on Sunday - putting Liverpool , Manchester United , Barcelona and Bayern Munich on high alert.
Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri came under fire from fans after he left Hudson-Odoi on the bench for his side's 2-1 win at Cardiff on Sunday.
The snub came despite the 18-year-old having impressed on his first start for England in their 5-1 Euro 2020 qualifying victory over Montenegro last Monday .
Sarri has continued to overlook youngster Callum Hudson-Odoi despite growing calls to give him his first Premier League start.
Interest in the forward has grown in recent weeks as he has continued to be frustrated by a lack of opportunities at Stamford Bridge.
According to German outlet Kicker, Liverpool have already made contact over the 18-year-old .
He has also been linked with Manchester United and Barcelona, while Bayern Munich attempted to sign him in January but had a £35m bid knocked back.
Hudson-Odoi could be tempted to follow the trail blazed by pal Jadon Sancho , who left Manchester City and is now starring for Borussia Dortmund.
Chelsea are reluctant to lose the 18-year-old as they face the prospect of a two-window transfer ban imposed by FIFA for irregularities in the market.
But ex-Liverpool star Jamie Carragher says if Sarri wants to keep him, he's going the wrong way about it .
Ahead of Chelsea’s clash with Cardiff , Sarri made the unusual admission that he didn’t watch much of Hudson-Odoi's England debut.
And Carragher said on Sky Sports: “My big problem with what Sarri said about Hudson-Odoi – and it really wound me up because I put myself in that lad’s position – was when he said ‘I only watched 20 minutes of that game and the 20 minutes I did watch, he didn’t even play that well’.
“This is a lad who is making his international debut. Why are you not watching the full game? You could argue he’s watching a load of his other Chelsea team-mates, flicking the channels, whatever. You don’t need to watch them. They’re all 27, 28, 29… this is a young kid. Can he handle the spotlight of playing for England?
“This is a lad I’m trying to keep at my club. So to then just dismiss this lad’s international debut, which is probably the biggest thing that’s ever happened to him as a footballer at a young age, to just dismiss it and say the 20 minutes I did watch he didn’t even play well.
“I could imagine people above Sarri shaking their heads and thinking, ‘Why did you say such a stupid thing in a press conference? We are trying to get this lad to sign a contract!’
“If he hasn’t watched it and he doesn’t think he’s played well, be clever and use your brain - don't say it. Say you did watch it. Give the lad a bit of a gee up. To dismiss someone’s international debut, I thought it was an absolutely stupid thing to say.”
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I always say only two things will get Sarri sacked. That is the love for Jorginho and his hatred for Odoi. Whenever Jorginho do not play well, he doesn't admit it but he will say the players didn't play to Jorginho's strength, that is they should do the dirty work for him. The fact that it worked perfectly for him at Napoli, doesn't mean it will work at Chelsea. Always when Odoi plays, he either give assist or score a goal but the next match he sit on the bench. It think Sarri knows he will be sacked so he is not considering the future of the club. He doesn't care whether Odoi feels happy or not. A coach who can change Kante's possible and suffer in terms of result and feel reluctant to twist the tactics. The most stubborn coach in modern era