Tammy Abraham vows to silence the haters

Tammy Abraham has vowed to ‘silence the haters’ who targeted him with racist abuse following Chelsea’s UEFA Super Cup defeat to Liverpool.

The 21-year-old received a rousing Stamford Bridge reception as a 61st-minute substitute in Sunday’s 1-1 draw against Leicester — his first outing since he missed the decisive spot-kick during the penalty shootout in Istanbul.

Abraham received what anti-discrimination organisation Kick It Out described as “predictable but no less disgusting” abuse on social media and the striker told Sky Sports: “You just want to silence the haters. You just want to do your bit on the pitch [and] let the football do the talking.

“Things happen in football. Unfortunately for me I was on the receiving end. I have had experiences of taking penalties under pressure [and] tucking them away. Unfortunately for me I missed.

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“I was getting some abuse but for me I am a positive guy. I don’t listen to the rubbish, to the people who try to bring you down. I just try to keep the focus on me and keep going.”

With a FIFA transfer ban restricting his options, new Chelsea manager Frank Lampard is determined to support the club’s younger players with regular game-time.

Mason Mount scored Chelsea’s goal on Sunday—a strike later cancelled out by Wilfred Ndidi’s second-half header—while Abraham continued his run of appearing in every competitive game under Lampard by replacing Olivier Giroud.