Thomas Tuchel says he does not want to get involved in the contractual situations of his Chelsea players amid speculation about Tammy Abraham’s future.
The England international is tied down to the Blues until the summer of 2023 after a one-year extension clause was triggered last summer.
However, Abraham has yet to be offered an improved deal since he made his breakthrough at Stamford Bridge.
The striker is thought to earn in the region of £58,000 per week, which is much lower than many of his team-mates.
Reports before the start of the season suggested Abraham was pushing for parity with fellow academy graduate Callum Hudson-Odoi, who supposedly pockets £130,000 per week.
The 23-year-old has yet to be offered improved terms, though, and Tuchel has moved to distance himself from such issues.
"I’m not aware of the contract situations of my players because I don’t want to be involved with judging this when I’m making the decisions of who’s playing and who’s not,” he said ahead of Monday’s meeting with Newcastle.
"He deserved to play at Barnsley. He had a difficult game against Burnley at home so he suffered from a tactical shift at half-time and did not play against Tottenham and Sheffield United. That’s why he deserved to play because he is a very positive guy, very clear, very ambitious.
"I like that he made his way on the loans and overcame obstacles in his career when he went on loan. He always scored for his teams. He was always there.
"He has the spirit to make it at Chelsea. This is one of the toughest challenges you can face but he is ready for that.
"He played well at Barnsley because he did not only score the decisive goal but was also very important in defensive set pieces, he cleared many situations for us with his head.
"He was absolutely ready to suffer and for that, he has all my credit. It’s a good new start for him to step up and show that he is important for us."
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