England Under-21 boss issues challenge to Abraham
England Under-21 boss Aidy Boothroyd has challenged Tammy Abraham to fight his way back into the senior set-up.
Abraham, 20, picked up two caps for Gareth Southgate’s side in friendlies against Germany and Brazil last November.
The Chelsea forward was on loan at Swansea at the time but his form petered out over the remainder of the season and he was nowhere near the World Cup squad that went on to finish fourth in Russia.
Instead, Abraham was helping England win the Toulon Tournament and later completed another loan move – this time to Championship outfit Aston Villa.
While Southgate prepares his seniors for their Uefa Nations League opener with Spain and a friendly against Switzerland, Abraham will be with Boothroyd’s under-21s looking to seal qualification to the European Championship next summer.
Boothroyd admits Abraham’s career to date has been something of a bumpy ride but wants the striker to show he can make it back to the big time.
“Very rarely do you get a players’ development that is on a smooth upward path,” he said.
“It is up and down, a rollercoaster. With Tammy, he has had an opportunity, he’s played (for the senior side), he’s got his cap, but now it’s about getting his head down and fighting his way back into that position.
“That’s just the beginning for him, not the end of it. It is a goal reached but now it is a question of how he can get 10 caps, 20 caps, 30 and so on. Tammy has had a taste of it and now he needs to fight his way back.”
While the international progression of some players has been clear, the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ruben Loftus-Cheek working through the age groups to go with the Three Lions to the World Cup, others have it harder.
Abraham was included in Chelsea’s matchday squad for their Community Shield defeat to Manchester City but was allowed to leave on loan to Villa at the end of August.
Boothroyd, whose side host Holland at Norwich’s Carrow Road on Thursday knowing a win will put them on the verge of qualifying for Euro 2019, believes Abraham now needs to bounce back from these minor setbacks.
“We have an individual plan for all of them and see where they are every six months,” he added.
“There is work going on behind the scenes on who is doing well, who is doing not so well and who is having adversity in their career.
“Tammy might be part of that but he’s got to fight his way back. That is part of any players’ tool kit. Mistakes happen and you’ve got to be able to live with them and move on and turn them into positives.”
