Chelsea players celebrate against Ajax in the Champions League. (Getty Images)
Tammy Abraham has emerged as Chelsea’s talisman, thanks to a breakthrough season that has taken his side to the top-four. Just 18 months ago, Abraham was among a host of Chelsea players packed off for yet another loan spell.
But Abraham’s time in the Championship with Aston Villa proved to be the making of the young striker and Chelsea are reaping the rewards. Now, Abraham stands as the undisputed leader of Chelsea’s attack, with his powerful presence and predatory instincts making him an essential part of Frank Lampard’s precocious team.
Abraham is just 22 and is playing his second season in the top-flight but the England international’s value to Chelsea has been clear over the last month. When he was sidelined with a hip injury for their London derby against West Ham, Abraham’s absence left Chelsea looking impotent as they slumped to a shock 1-0 defeat. But just days later, Abraham was back in the starting line-up and Chelsea were revitalized as he produced a goal and an assist in a 2-1 win against Aston Villa.
Abraham, a product of Chelsea’s youth academy, already has scored 12 Premier League goals this season. It is a far cry from his dismal loan spell at Swansea in 2017-18, when his lack of goals and subdued performances suggested that perhaps the Londoner wasn’t cut out for the Premier League.
However, he hit 26 goals in 40 matches on loan at Villa, helping them win promotion from the Championship and catching Lampard’s eye during his one-season reign at second-tier outfit Derby County.
Leicester City, shock champions four seasons ago, are flying again in the Premier League, thanks in large part to a formidable scoring run from Jamie Vardy. His 17 goals this season mean that he is already two-thirds towards his best total of 24 Premier League goals in Leicester’s title-winning season of 2015-16.
In 19 league games this season, Vardy has scored 17 goals and provided 3 assists this season. Abraham, on the other hand, has scored 12 goals and provided 3 assists in 20 games. Abraham has managed 3.1 shots per game and 0.9 key passes when compared to Vardy’s 2.6 shots and 0.6 key passes.
Vardy has averaged 0.7 dribbles while Abraham has 0.4 dribbles per game. Vardy has a pass success of 72.7% while Abraham has averaged 67% successful passes.
Both players have been vital to their teams’ progress and the importance of their goals have been justified by the teams’ position in the league table.