Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham is reportedly set to become the subject of a £40 million transfer bid from Premier League rivals Aston Villa ahead of the summer window.
According to a report from Football Insider, Aston Villa have taken pole position ahead of Wolves and Leicester City in the race to sign England striker Tammy Abraham from Chelsea. The Villans have set aside £40 million in order to launch a bid for the 23-year-old.
Abraham came through the youth ranks at Chelsea but had to wait until the last season to get his big breakthrough, which only came about because the Blues had been hit with a transfer ban. The centre-forward made the most of his opportunity, enjoying a stunning start to the campaign, although his form dwindled towards the backend of the season when he lost his place to Olivier Giroud.
Chances in the starting XI have become even more difficult for Abraham in the ongoing campaign following the arrivals of Timo Werner and Kai Havertz. Still, the England international has emerged with credit and sits at the top of the club’s goalscoring charts for the season with 12 strikes to his name.
However, opportunities have been hard to come by under Thomas Tuchel over the past couple of months and all signs are pointing towards an exit for the academy ace, especially as Chelsea are set to go all out for the signing of Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund. This has seen Abraham attract interest from several Premier League clubs, including the likes of Leicester City and West Ham United, apart from Aston Villa.
But it seems like Aston Villa have stolen a march on their competitors as they have already begun laying the groundwork for a deal to sign Abraham. The 23-year-old is a popular figure at Villa Park, given that he played an integral role in the club’s promotion in the 2018/19 campaign when he was on loan from Chelsea. And, it is now being claimed that Dean Smith & co. are ready to go big to secure his transfer on a permanent basis.
Chelsea have slapped a valuation of £40 million on Abraham, which Aston Villa are ready to meet and have already set aside funds for the move. The Midlands’ club went big on a striker last summer as well, bringing in Ollie Watkins from Brentford, who has enjoyed a memorable debut campaign in the Premier League. So, it will be interesting to see how they plan to fit Abraham into the scheme of things as well.
As things stand though, it seems like Villa have pulled ahead of the likes of Leicester, West Ham and Wolves in the race for Abraham. It now remains to be seen if the 23-year-old does secure a return to Villa Park, this time on a permanent basis.
