“I didn’t think he’d do this well” – Micah Richards surprised by ‘absolutely brilliant’ display from player since leaving Chelsea

Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards has been impressed by Tammy Abraham since the Englishman joined AS Roma from Chelsea in the summer of 2021.

Richards has applauded Abraham for hitting the ground running at AS Roma in his first season in a new league. The 24-year-old forward has exceeded the expectations of the former player-turned-pundit since his move to Italy.

Speaking to the BBC (via The Chelsea Chronicle), Micah Richards said:

“I always thought he would do well, I didn’t think he’d do this well so soon. It’s been absolutely brilliant. Every time you watch Roma, he’s class. He’s running in behind, his hold up play seems to have got better.

"He’s really working hard for the team and he fully deserves it," he added. "He did alright at Chelsea, I thought he would have been given more of an opportunity to be honest. He’s done better than I thought he would have done though. I thought this would be his second season, not his first.”

Tammy Abraham joined AS Roma for a fee of £34 million after failing to secure regular game time under Thomas Tuchel. Despite moving to a foreign land, the English forward has made a bright start to his life in Italy. Abraham has scored 23 goals and provided four assists in 40 appearances for Jose Mourinho's side this season.

Abraham has already broken the record for the most goals scored by an AS Roma player in his debut season. The previous record was held by Gabriel Batistuta and Vincenzo Montella for 21 goals.

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Chelsea have inserted a buy-back clause in Tammy Abraham's deal

According to the BBC, Chelsea have included a buy-back clause in Tammy Abraham's deal. The clause is reportedly around £68 million and can only be activated by the Blues once Abraham has completed two years with AS Roma. This means that Thomas Tuchel's side can re-sign their academy graduate at the end of the 2022-23 season.

Based on Tammy Abraham's form, there is no reason for the European champions to not activate the buy-back clause in his contract. The west London club could do with a proven goalscorer who has exposure in the Premier League. They signed Romelu Lukaku last summer for a club-record £97.5 million. However, that deal has not gone as per plans.

As things stand, Lukaku has managed to score just 12 goals in 34 appearances for Chelsea across all competitions. The Belgian forward has also expressed his desire to leave Stamford Bridge in the near future. This could open the door for Tammy Abraham to return to West London in 2023.