Chelsea have put contract talks with Tammy Abraham on hold amid their transfer pursuit of Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland, according to ESPN.
The report claims there were already talks over a new contract between Chelsea and the 23-year-old last summer before the negotiations stalled in part over his wage demands.
Abraham eventually triggered a one-year extension last July, tying him to the club until 2023.
Having already tied down other academy graduates such as Reece James, Mason Mount, and Fikayo Tomori to longer deals, the Blues are still expected to do the same to Abraham.
However, Chelsea are reportedly reluctant to offer Abraham a six-figure weekly salary and both parties would like to wait until the end of the season before reassessing the situation.
Despite leading the club’s goalscoring charts this season, the England international has fallen down in the No.9 pecking order this season.
Aside from Timo Werner’s arrival, Kai Havertz has emerged as a centre-forward option under Thomas Tuchel.
There might be an even bigger competition for the No.9 role at Chelsea next season with the club reportedly looking to sign a new striker — and Abraham is reportedly wary of the speculation.
As things stand, ESPN added, senior figures at Chelsea are confident of bringing highly-rated Borussia Dortmund ace Haaland to Stamford Bridge this summer.
Chronicle view
Based on the situation according to the report, it is not a surprise that both Chelsea and Abraham are hesitant to continue the contract negotiation for now.
Abraham has only three starts under Tuchel so far, and he was subbed off at half-time in two of those games, while his recent ankle injury clearly did not help either.
He has also been left out of the England squad for this month’s World Cup qualifiers, with Gareth Southgate saying Abraham’s struggles at Chelsea as the primary reason behind the decision.
Abraham would understandably want to keep his options open ahead of the summer transfer window.
While for Chelsea’s point of view, the opportunity to sign Haaland is something that they would not want to miss.
If they somehow manage to sign the Norway international, cashing in on Abraham this summer does not sound like a bad idea.
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