Aston Villa: Tammy Abraham is close to joining from Besiktas in a deal worth £18m

Aston Villa They are close to completing an £18m deal for Besiktas striker Tammy Abraham.

The 28-year-old is expected to complete his move to Villa Park over the weekend after traveling to the UK. It is understood that he will undergo a medical examination on Saturday.

Abraham was a priority target for coach Unai Emery who was looking for extra firepower to back Ollie Watkins, especially after Donyiel Malen was sold to Roma last week.

Besiktas signed the England international on loan from Roma last summer, with a commitment to buy if certain goals were achieved.

The Turkish side are believed to have exercised their purchase option for around £12m, meaning Villa will pay Besiktas a transfer fee.

Reports in Türkiye suggest that defender Yasin Ozcan, who has been on loan at Anderlecht, will join Besiktas from Villa as part of the agreement.

Roberto Owolabi, Villa’s head of football operations, traveled to Türkiye to watch Abraham in action in Besiktas’s 1-0 win over Kayserispor on Monday.

Abraham joined Roma from Chelsea in August 2021 for £34m and was a regular under coach Jose Mourinho.

He played 120 times for Roma and played a key role in helping them win the Conference League in 2021-22 – scoring nine goals in 13 appearances.

But the striker fell down the pecking order after Mourinho was sacked in January 2024 and was loaned out to Milan the following season.

He made history in his first season – scoring 17 league goals making him the highest English goalscorer in a single Serie A season.

David Platt (31) and Gerry Hitchens (58) are the only Englishmen to have scored more than Abraham’s tally of 29 goals in Serie A.

Abraham spent the 2018-19 season on loan at Villa, scoring 25 goals to help them return to the Premier League through the Championship play-offs.