Wolverhampton Wanderers are on the verge of securing their first signing of the winter transfer window with Tammy Abraham reportedly close to joining them from Chelsea. The England international, who is currently on a season-long loan with Aston Villa, is expected to have his temporary contract terminated with Aston Villa before sealing a short-term move across the west Midlands.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s team were initially keen on securing a permanent deal for the Blues’ graduate but the west London side are said to have snubbed the approach, given the marksman is considered as a huge prospect for the future. Still, the west Midlands side are making progress towards finalising a short-term loan for the striker, who is currently leading the Championship scoring charts with 16 goals alongside Sheffield United’s Billy Sharp.
At present, Abraham’s move is under the radar of FIFA given their ‘two-club’ rule with the striker having featured for both Chelsea and Villa during the ongoing campaign. However, his only competitive appearance for Chelsea in the Community Shield is regarded as an ‘invitational’ game and Wolves are confident that the move would be pushed through during the forthcoming days.
Meanwhile, the deal should witness Chelsea trigger the break clause to end the striker’s Villa stint and it remains to be seen whether the Englishman can succeed at the top level after struggling with Swansea City during the course of the previous campaign. Abraham managed just five goals for the Swans last term as they were relegated from the top-flight and he has potential question marks as to whether he can make the step up after shining in the second tier.
Still, it will be interesting to see how Nuno fits the players into the scheme of things, given Benfica loanee Raul Jimenez has been hugely impressive upfront where he has already amassed six goals and four assists while producing strong match-winning displays against Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea among others.