Chelsea transfer news: Aston Villa join race for Tammy Abraham

Aston Villa are set to compete with Arsenal and West Ham United for the signing of Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham.

According to The Telegraph, Dean Smith is keen to work with the 23-year-old striker again after he played a key role in Villa’s promotion to the Premier League.

Abraham scored 26 goals in 37 games, and was named in the PFA Team of the Year, as the club went up via the play-offs in 2019.

When he returned to Stamford Bridge, Abraham was finally given a sustained run in the first team and flourished under Frank Lampard.

He was Chelsea’s top scorer with 18 goals in all competitions, including a hat-trick in a 5-2 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Along with Reece James, Mason Mount, Fikayo Tomori and Callum Hudson-Odoi, he was one of several beneficiaries of the club’s transfer ban.

Rather than signing proven players for huge fees, the Blues were forced to rely on some of the youngsters who had come through their academy system.

Abraham has two years left on his contract but struggled for game time after Thomas Tuchel was appointed in January, leading to rumours that he would be sold.

West Ham and Arsenal have already expressed interest in signing Abraham, who has won six caps for England so far.

He made his debut in a friendly against Germany in November 2017, whilst still on loan at Swansea City, but had to wait another two years before being recalled to the squad.

Smith is also hoping to be reunited with Manchester United’s Axel Tuanzebe, another member of Villa’s promotion-winning team.

The young defender played at both right-back and centre-back that season, making 30 appearances in total, despite missing three months with a fractured metatarsal.