Some Chelsea players have been left confused with Thomas Tuchel’s treatment of Tammy Abraham, according to reports.
Abraham had emerged as an important player for former Blues manager Frank Lampard, scoring 18 goals in all competitions last campaign.
Following on from his impressive loan spell at Aston Villa, Abraham looked as though he could develop into a key player for Chelsea, but he has fallen out of favour since Tuchel’s appointment in the January window.
Abraham has been left out of a number of matchday squads, and recently on Saturday for Chelsea’s shock defeat to Premier League struggling team West Brom.
While explaining Abraham’s absence, Tuchel said: ‘He was not in the squad. I have to nominate 18 players. There are tough choices to make.
‘We take the choices of what the game demands, of what we predict, of the substitutions that we have. In the end, we have to select 18 players for more or less 20 positions.
‘So we have to leave three players out and Tammy was one of the three players. It’s nothing personal or nothing big. He has the same chance to play every three days like everybody else.’
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Despite Tuchel attempting to downplay Abraham’s absence, the Daily Telegraph claim his treatment of the stiker has ‘confused’ some Chelsea players, and the England international himself.
As Abraham has fallen down the pecking order at Chelsea, a number of clubs have expressed interest in securing his signature ahead of the summer window. And former England defender Joleon Lescott expects him to leave this summer.
He said last month: ‘Tammy has not necessarily played badly but for whatever reason he hasn’t been given opportunities by Tuchel. ‘Do I see him being there long-term? I don’t to be honest. I see him having to go away. We’ve seen that in the past with Chelsea.
‘It would be slightly naive of Chelsea to think they don’t need a Tammy Abraham because he’s proven he can score goals. I’d like to see him stick around but I don’t see it happening.’
