Chelsea may entrust former manager Rafael Benitez with the development of one of their top prospects. Benitez’s Newcastle are likely signing Tammy Abraham to a one-year loan deal.
Newcastle United appear to have pipped Brighton & Hove Albion to Chelsea’s approval for a Tammy Abraham loan. The top two clubs in last year’s Championship sought Abraham to fuel their quest for an extended stay in the Premier League. Benitez’s relationship with Chelsea and the Blues’ trust in his player development skills gave Newcastle the advantage.
Abraham’s 23 goals at Bristol City match the output of Newcastle’s and Brighton’s leading scorers. Both of those players – Dwight Gayle and Glenn Murray, respectively – have years of Premier League experience before their recent stint in the Championship.
However, Newcastle’s Gayle only scored a total of 15 goals in his three seasons before Newcastle, all with Crystal Palace in the Premier League. While he has experience in the top flight, he does not have a record of success.
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This leaves Rafael Benitez with two highly-talented Championship strikers but none proven in the Premier League. Tammy Abraham has more upside, being young, full of confidence and determination, and malleable under Benitez’s training.
Benitez may yet pursue a more experienced forward to ensure offensive output and lead the line. That could cut into Abraham’s playing time, but would have the benefit of reducing some pressure and giving Abraham an example from which to learn.
Either Newcastle or Brighton would be a strong destination for Abraham. After his massive season on loan at Bristol City, Abraham has to play in the Premier League for the 2017/18 campaign. Anything else would be a step backward in his progression. Even an overseas loan to a top division club would only delay his rise to Chelsea’s first team.
Tammy Abraham could have made the fringes of Chelsea’s squad this year. He likely would have spent most of the season training with little pitch time, filling the Michy Batshuayi role of stoppage time substitutions and early-round domestic cup matches. The evolving, complicated Diego Costa situation may have Chelsea thinking they will already have one striker too many. Loaning Abraham was always an option, and will certainly result in far more minutes.
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Having outgrown the Championship, Tammy Abraham is Premier League-ready. His next goal is to make himself Chelsea-ready. Rafael Benitez knows what that entails, and could play an unusual role in Chelsea’s future.