England striker rejected move to FIVE London clubs

It has been a case of one in, one out at Stamford Bridge in the past week, as Chelsea re-signed Romelu Lukaku for a club-record fee before selling Tammy Abraham to Roma on Tuesday. 

The 28-year-old returns to Chelsea as the club’s most expensive player in history, and looks set to make his second debut for the club against Arsenal on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Abraham, who had finished as the club’s top scorer across all competitions in each of the past two seasons, departs for Serie A for around £34 million.

Abraham was one of a number of academy graduates introduced into the first team under previous manager Frank Lampard, but the Englishman struggled for game time since Thomas Tuchel’s arrival and departs in search of more regular football.

Abraham contributed with 12 goals and six assists last season.

Now, it has emerged that the 23-year-old has received last-minute approaches from a handful of Premier League clubs, but rejected them all in order to join the Italian side.

According to 90min, Abraham rejected advances from Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, West Ham United and Crystal Palace, choosing instead to move to the Italian capital.

The report suggests that the six-time England international was attracted by Roma’s willingness to put a deal on the table, and the way that they made him feel wanted.

Abraham will reunite with former Blues boss Jose Mourinho in Italy, and could be available for the club’s season opener against Fiorentina this weekend.

The striker is the latest in a string of academy graduates to have departed Chelsea on a permanent basis this summer, with Marc Guehi, Lewis Bate, Timo Livramento, Myles Peart-Harris and Dynel Simeu all departing West London for good.

Meanwhile, midfield pair Billy Gilmour and Conor Gallagher have joined Norwich City and Crystal Palace on loan, respectively.