Maurizio Sarri says he has not decided whether Callum Hudson-Odoi will play in Chelsea’s Europa League game against Dynamo Kiev – and has accused the media of putting the youngster under too much pressure.
Head coach Sarri has regularly faced questions about his limited use of Hudson-Odoi – and it was a similar story at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
“Callum is always in my mind in every match. I don’t know if tomorrow he will be on the pitch or not,” Sarri said.
“I think you (the media) have to put less pressure on a young English player, because they need to improve.
“I have never seen a player of 18 at the top, so Callum – and all the other young players in England – needs to improve.
“At this moment it is very important for him to improve and then he will be able to be at the top when he is 22 or 23.
“I think that you put too much pressure on the young English players.”
Sarri will make changes for the round-of-16 first leg at Stamford Bridge, with his players having recently been involved in gruelling matches against Manchester City, Tottenham and Fulham.
He said: “We are lucky we have no injuries. Of course we have some players who are very tired because the last week was really very hard for us.
“We need to consider the situation and I think we need to rest some players.”