Director makes flight to up the ante as Abraham tug of war takes new twist
The tug of war for the services of Tammy Abraham is continuing while he prepares for the UEFA Super Cup, with Roma making their next move to beat Arsenal to his signature.
Abraham is in the Chelsea squad for the Super Cup against Villarreal on Wednesday night. But if he plays, it could be one of his final outings in a blue shirt. The striker is at the centre of a transfer battle between Arsenal and Roma, each of whom want to take him away from Stamford Bridge.
It is understood that while Roma are the ones to find an agreement with Chelsea, Arsenal have instead struck a deal with Abraham over personal terms. One side or the other will need to complete the missing step that the other has done to finalise a transfer.
The England international would prefer to join Arsenal, but there is a belief that his entourage want him to test himself in Italy. As things stand, though, he is still hesitant to head abroad.
Thus, Arsenal should have a window of opportunity to sort out the remaining terms. But Roma are refusing to give up and their general manager Tiago Pinto, who effectively acts as their sporting director but with a different title, has flown to London on Wednesday.
Even though Abraham is currently in Belfast with his teammates, Pinto will be able to meet with his representatives back home in the English capital. His aim is to convince the entourage further about a move to Serie A. Then, a further meeting involving the player himself could take place after the Super Cup.
Amid those developments, Goal claim that Roma have revised their offer to pay more up front to Chelsea, which could further make them even more favourable than Arsenal. Now, the Italians are willing to pay around €40m and will let the Blues keep a buyback clause.
They are also willing to do business with a permanent transfer immediately, as opposed to the loan plus obligation to buy that had been speculated. The Champions League titlists have accepted the offer.
Chelsea have preferred to sell abroad rather than to a direct rival all along. Even so, a transfer will still rest with Abraham, who has spoken to Roma boss Jose Mourinho but is yet to commit, in the hope that Arsenal can do a deal.
Tuchel provides Abraham update
Amid the uncertainty over Abraham’s future, Tuchel gave an update on Tuesday when previewing the Super Cup.
“He was clearly not happy with the last half a year and he has maybe reason not to be happy,” said Tuchel.
“Maybe it was my fault not to push him and trust him at the same level as other players. I can understand he wants more minutes, so the decision will be how do we plan?
“What are Tammy’s plans? Does he fight his way back into the team from the position he ended last season? Or does he want to change the club to one where he has a better chance of being a starter?
“I can understand and this is the situation. It’s quite a normal situation until the transfer window is closed. Tammy is one of the players where we constantly evaluate the situation and adapt to the needs.
“There is no news now, he is available for the starting XI tomorrow or to come off the bench.”
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