Jonty Banks

Sat 11 February 2023 16:00, UK

When ranking the most influential signings Aston Villa have made, Tammy Abraham may well sit right at the top, despite his stint in the West Midlands lasting under twelve months.

On transfer deadline day of the 2018 summer window, Steve Bruce confirmed the club had snapped up Chelsea striker Abraham on a season-long loan in an attempt to return to the top flight of English football.

What followed at Villa Park that season would go down in folk law, and Abraham’s contribution will never be forgotten.

Over the course of the 46-game season, Abraham netted 25 league goals, as well as a crucial winner in the Championship play-off semi-final against West Brom.

If Villa fans had any doubts about Abraham’s ability to lead the line when he first joined the club, they were quickly silenced, as the former England Under-21 international scored on his home debut in a 2-0 win over Rotherham United.

And even as Bruce’s side continued to struggle with the relentless nature of the Championship, Abraham continued to prove himself a cut above the rest with goal after goal at the tip of Villa’s attack.

A particular highlight for many of the claret and blue faithful will be the four goals he scored in a quite simply ludicrous 5-5 draw at the City Ground against Nottingham Forest, as Dean Smith was hired as manager following Bruce’s failures in the managerial hot seat.

The striker remains the only player to this day to have scored four times in a single game for Aston Villa in the 21st century.

By the turn of the year, Abraham had scored 16 goals in 20 appearances and was the joint-top goalscorer in the league as Villa finally started to move through the gears under their new manager.

The vast majority of his goals were instinctive, fox-in-the-box style finishes, but his ability to run in behind defences added yet another string to Villa’s already brimming bow.

He confirmed his cult hero status with the Villa faithful when he reportedly turned down the opportunity to move on loan to Wolves for the remainder of the campaign and capped off a stunning start to the New Year by netting a brace against Ipswich Town – and becoming the first player since Tom Waring in 1933 to score in seven successive home matches.

The records kept tumbling for Abraham as the season progressed, as Smith’s number nine became the first man since Andy Gray in 1977 to net 25 league goals in a single campaign, as the team progressed for the Championship playoffs for the second successive season.

Taking on local rivals West Brom in the semi-finals of the playoffs, Villa got off to a winning start in the first leg, thanks to a 25-yard screamer from Conor Hourihane and a further goal from Abraham.

Despite losing the second leg 1-0, the pressure would once again fall on Abraham’s shoulders from the penalty spot as he was offered the chance to take the Villans through to Wembley from 12 yards out. Calmly stepping up to take his spot-kick, with the trademark stutter in his run-up, the forward rolled the ball beyond the diving Sam Johnstone in the Baggies net to send the on watching fans into delirium.

After Villa claimed play-off glory against Derby County at Wembley, Abraham had the send-off he so greatly deserved after a stunning campaign full of personal highlights.

Considering he was brought to the club on a one-year loan deal, the impact the now-Roma striker had on proceedings is quite profound, and will be remembered for many years to come.

In other Aston Villa news, the club are set to revive interest in an Athletic Bilbao player in the summer after a failed January swoop.