Tammy Abraham proved the difference at both ends of the pitch as Chelsea beat Barnsley 1-0 in the FA Cup on Thursday night as Micah Richards hailed his ‘hidden talent’ for defending.
The England international scored the only goal of the match, tapping into an open net from a Reece James cross just after the hour mark.
The 23-year-old then showed off his defensive skills producing a spectacular goal line clearance as he headed Michael Sollbauer’s flicked shot over the crossbar.
Abraham says he took more satisfaction from the clearance than the goal as he revealed he used to play as a defender.
‘I grew up being a defender so just an instinctive reaction, getting in there and being in the right place,’ Abraham told the BBC.
‘I saw the ball coming and just said, “I had to do this, I had to try something” and it worked.
‘Probably the goal line clearance [I enjoyed more than the goal], it’s a 1-0 win, coming here is never easy so we’ll take that.’
Richards, who played with Abraham when the striker was on loan at Aston Villa for the 2018-19 season, was shocked to see this defensive side of his game, but was also thoroughly impressed.
‘He never did that at Villa in training!’ Richards said. ‘He said he used to be a defender, I never knew that.
‘But look at his intelligence to get back on the line. It’s absolutely brilliant.
‘I’ve never seen him do it ever before, it’s a hidden talent there.’
Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount, who wasn’t playing on Thursday night, was also impressed by his teammate’s defensive skills, tweeting: ‘He don’t just score goals, the boy! What a clearance.’
Abraham replied: ‘1v1’s against me tomorrow!’
The victory at Oakwell books Chelsea a quarter-final tie against Sheffield United.
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