Aston Villa

Aston Villa

Premier League • England

Aston Villa prepare only ‘tempting’ offer for striker in half-price deal after 10-game goalless run puts Chelsea off

Tammy Abraham replacing Andrea Belotti

Aston Villa appear to be at the front of the queue for the signing of a striker who has struggled recently, but they know he is better than he has been showing.

Finding a new centre-forward is one of Aston Villa’s main priorities ahead of the summer transfer window. During January, they allowed Danny Ings to leave for West Ham. They did replenish their depth with Jhon Duran, but he is more one for the future.

Hence, Unai Emery may want to find someone else he can rely on up front to compete with the in-form Ollie Watkins, who has scored in six of his most recent eight appearances.

Recently, rumours emerged about Aston Villa being contenders for the signature of Romelu Lukaku. However, another striker with a Chelsea past is also on their radar.

For a few months, Villa have been tipped to bring back Tammy Abraham from Roma after previously having him on loan during his Chelsea days.

Abraham previously made a good impression at Villa Park, scoring 26 goals in 40 appearances to help Dean Smith’s side win promotion from the Championship to the Premier League in 2019.

Since then, he scored 30 goals across two seasons back at Chelsea before moving to Roma in 2021. He scored more goals in his first season there than any other player in the Serie A side’s history, finding the net 27 times and lifting the Europa Conference League trophy by the end of it.

But this season, Abraham has looked a shadow of his former self. He has only scored seven goals from 38 appearances and has drawn a blank in each of his past 10 outings.

He has sometimes lost his place as a starter to Andrea Belotti, which somewhat proves his downfall given that the Italian hasn’t even scored in Serie A himself this season.

Aston Villa might provide Abraham with old fresh start

Therefore, there is a feeling that Abraham might need a fresh start to breathe new life into his career, just like what happened to him initially in Italy. And Villa have not forgotten what he can be capable of.

With that in mind, the Villans remain in contention to sign Abraham in the summer. In fact, according to AS Roma Live, they are the “only” club who are “tempting” the Giallorossi to give up the England international at present. That is despite him recently being linked with Man Utd too.

Indeed, Villa would be willing to make an offer of around €40million (£35m) for Abraham, which is about what Roma paid. Thus, the Italians would make a capital gain on the 25-year-old.

Alternatively, Chelsea have a buyback clause worth €80m (£70m). However, despite their own need for another striker, they don’t seem willing to activate it – perhaps understandably so.

Consequently, Villa have a chance of securing a half-price deal for Abraham. A bid of €40m should be enough to convince Roma to let go of Abraham, who is under contract until 2026.

Perhaps returning to Villa could allow Abraham to get back on track. He will have some issues to shake off from this season, though, so it would be a calculated risk.

READ MORETottenham in pole position to sign Aston Villa star despite five rival offers, with Chelsea man also considered in shock twist