Abraham struggling with ankle trouble again

Thomas Tuchel has confirmed that Tammy Abraham missed Chelsea’s FA Cup match against Sheffield United because the striker is again struggling with an ankle problem.

Abraham, who has previously been plagued by ankle trouble, limped out of training ahead of the game.

Blues boss Tuchel was initially hopeful Abraham would be able to play but the recurrence of the injury was significant enough to rule him out.

Tuchel explained: “He quit training yesterday after only five minutes, so there was no chance that he could join the squad.

“It is still more or less the same injury. He had a bit of a re-injury in a training accident. So he’s in pain.”

Abraham has the two-week international break to try to recover from the problem.

And Tuchel believes he needs to focus on getting fit and not worry about losing his place for the time being.

The German said: “First, he needs to be fit. Second, take it step by step to good training performances and fight for your way back.

“The way back is maybe for him to be a substitute and to be hungry and full of quality in training. These are the next steps.

“But now is not the moment to worry about the first 11 because he has been out already for many games.

“It’s absolutely not his fault. He tried to come back – he tries all the time – but this is the risk in pushing the players to be back as soon as possible.

“Now it’s kind of a restart and I hope that he can use the two weeks to get fit again. This is the most important thing right now.”