Aston Villa told how ‘£22m’ deal will pave the way for Tammy Abraham and ‘another striker’ signing
Aston Villa should agree a loan with an obligation to buy in their pursuit of Roma striker Tammy Abraham.
That is according to football finance expert Dr Dan Plumley, who has exclusively told Football Insider that Aston Villa need to qualify for the Champions League this season to help with UEFA squad cost.
Roma are willing to sell Abraham in the January transfer window, and Aston Villa have emerged as the front-runners to sign the 28-year-old.
Aston Villa let Donyell Malen leave for Roma earlier in the window, so Unai Emery is keen to sign a new forward to strengthen his attacking options.
UEFA ‘monitoring’ Aston Villa deals
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Plumley believes Aston Villa would be taking a risk signing Abraham on a permanent deal in January without assurances of Champions League revenue next season.
“Look at the next few months for Aston Villa, there’s a big Champions League factor in this, I think, given where they are in the table,” Plumley said.
“We know they’ve had their troubles with UEFA. We know UEFA are still monitoring that, but they’ll know exactly where they are against UEFA squad cost.
“The Champions League helps with the additional revenue, which helps that metric. So when you’re looking at this, bringing in a player potentially like Tammy Abraham, a loan but with an obligation to buy, that frees you up a bit of headroom to potentially get that Abraham deal done.
“If that deal is something that works and, ultimately, they could stay where they are in the table, and you get into the Champions League, you’ll probably look back at that and go that was shrewd business.
“They’re still risking that, of course, but certainly, you know, with the obligation to buy for Malen being at nearly £22m, it does give you a bit of room to work with if you can get that deal done, and might free up the move for, you know, Abraham or potentially another striker to come in.”
Champions League helps Aston Villa beat club record
Aston Villa recorded record revenue following their Champions League exploits in the 2024-25 season, when Emery’s side made the quarter-finals of the competition.
The Villains have had to settle for Europa League football this campaign following a sixth-placed Premier League finish last season.
Progression to the knockout stages of the Europa League has been confirmed, with Aston Villa one of the favourites to lift the trophy in May.