'He has reason not to be happy' - Thomas Tuchel admits he did not have full trust in Tammy Abraham at Chelsea

ByEurosport

Updated 10/08/2021 at 19:15 GMT

“He has reason not to be happy after the lack of game time last season but it’s maybe also my fault for not trusting him as much as other players,” Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel said before his side face Villarreal in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday. Chelsea are on the brink of signing Romelu Lukaku from Inter Milan, eight years on from his last game for the Blues

Thomas Tuchel has admitted he did not trust Tammy Abraham as much as other Chelsea players last season.

Tuchel replaced Frank Lampard at the helm of Chelsea mid-way through last season, and capped a fine campaign by guiding the club to Champions League glory.

Abraham did not even make the squad for the Champions League final win over Manchester City, and has been strongly linked with a summer move to Serie A side Roma.

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Tuchel did not give anything away on the future of the striker, but conceded he did not have the necessary trust in Abraham in his first season at the club.

“He has reason not to be happy after the lack of game time last season but it’s maybe also my fault for not trusting him as much as other players,” Tuchel said before his side face Villarreal in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday.

Chelsea are on the brink of signing Romelu Lukaku from Inter Milan, and that would force Abraham further down the pecking order.

Tuchel would not comment on the prospect of Abraham moving on, but suggested it could be in the player’s mind.

“Does he want to change to be a regular starter elsewhere? That’s completely up to him, but he’s with us and available for the team tomorrow here in Belfast,” Tuchel said.

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