[dropcap]A[/dropcap]RSENAL striker Eddie Nketiah and Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi appear to give up on their England chances as they are reportedly set to switch allegiances to Ghana.
Nketiah leads the England Under-21 side’s all-time scoring list, while Hudson-Odoi made three appearances for the senior team back in 2019.
Football.London though have stated that both players have been persuaded to switch allegiances to Ghana – in a boost for the African nation ahead of this year’s World Cup.
Nketiah, who has scored four goals in his last four Premier League appearances, has previously made 17 appearances for the England Under-21 set-up.
Despite scoring 16 goals at Under-21 level, he has yet to secure an international cap for the senior squad.
Hudson-Odoi, meanwhile, has made competitive appearances for Gareth Southgate’s squad when he was still a teenager, during the qualifiers for Euro 2020.
A FIFA rule change in September 2020 allows players with no more than three caps to change their allegiance if those caps came before their 21st birthday, the British Daily Mail newspaper reports.
Should both men officially make the switch, it will boost their chances of playing at this year’s World Cup in Qatar.
Ghana qualified for the tournament and will play in a group alongside Portugal, Uruguay and South Korea.
While England are stacked in forward positions, it would still come as a blow to Southgate, who will have a slightly smaller pool of players to choose from.
At club level, both men have not had the easiest of times for their respective clubs this season.
Nketiah made just three short cameo appearances in Arsenal’s opening 20 league games of the season.
It’s said that Nketiah has rejected a number of Arsenal contract offers this season, which would leave him able to depart on a free transfer when his contract expires this summer.
He made his first league start in the 1-0 defeat to Southampton and has started every game since.
His braces against former sides Chelsea and Leeds have helped put Arsenal in a commanding position to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Hudson-Odoi has made 28 appearances in all competitions, scoring three goals and providing six assists.
However, he has been out of action since January with an achilles tendon injury.
He made his international debut in a 5-0 victory over the Czech Republic in 2019, before later playing games against Montenegro and Kosovo that same year.
Hudson-Odoi caused controversy when he turned down the opportunity to play for the England Under-21 team last year, so that he could focus on fighting for his place at Chelsea.
