Hudson-Odoi and James return to action

Callum Hudson-Odoi returned to action and inspired Chelsea’s development side to a 2-1 win against Brighton at Stamford Bridge.

The England international, who tore his Achilles tendon against Burnley in April, completed 60 minutes in the Premier League 2 clash, while Reece James played the first half.

James has also endured a lengthy spell on the sidelines, having injured his ankle while away on international duty with England’s Under-20s during the summer.

Henry Lawrence drew first blood on 19 minutes, thanks to Hudson-Odoi’s assist, when he curled past goalkeeper Tom McGill into the far corner of the net.

Chelsea dominated the game for large periods but wasted glorious chances to put Brighton away through Tariq Lamptey and Charlie Brown.

James was replaced by Thierno Ballo at half-time and Hudson-Odoi came off for Tino Anjorin on the hour mark.

Marcel Lewis doubled the Blues’ lead when he slotted home from close range and Alex Cochrane grabbed Brighton’s consolation goal in the last minute of stoppage time.

Speaking at a news conference earlier on Friday, manager Frank Lampard said: “Callum’s going to play along with Reece James, so they’ll get minutes which is important now because Callum has been training with us for a while but there are still some issues with the injury itself that we need to make sure he’s OK with.

“He’ll need to get match fit, so these games are really beneficial for him and Reece James similarly.

“I ‘m pleased with that. They’re two young players that are going to be big for this club going forward.”