Jurgen Klopp Says Chelsea's Tammy Abraham 'Is Now a £60M Player'

Tammy Abraham can count Jurgen Klopp among the many who have been impressed with his performances, after the Liverpool manager valued the Chelsea striker at £60 million on Friday.

Speaking ahead of the Premier League leaders' match with the Blues at Stamford Bridge, Klopp praised the young players who make Chelsea a threat, per Zinny Boswell of Sky Sports: "Tammy Abraham is now a £60m player, Mason Mount is for sure a £60m player, if not more, Callum Hudson-Odoi was that already."

Klopp noted how the ascension of academy graduates like Abraham and midfielder Mason Mount into first-team stars helps Chelsea remind him of his Borussia Dortmund teams. The Liverpool chief made his name winning the Bundesliga title at Dortmund in 2011 and 2012 with a team populated by youthful talents such as Mario Gotze.

Looking at the rest of Chelsea's squad, Klopp also lauded the experience in the ranks, name-checking Mateo Kovacic, Willian and Olivier Giroud, among others. The mix of youth and age has led Klopp to believe the Blues have been unaffected by a FIFA-imposed transfer ban set to last until next summer: "If there was one club in the world who a transfer ban didn't hit that bad, it was probably Chelsea."

The performances of players like 21-year-old Abraham are why Chelsea have coped without adding several new faces this summer. His efforts have finally given the Blues a trustworthy finisher at the heart of the forward line, one of the glaring needs in the squad the last two seasons.

Abraham has answered the call by showcasing a growing confidence in front of goal, along with bullying defences in the air and stretching them with pace. Those qualities have helped the player who spent last season on loan at Aston Villa in the Championship amass seven goals in the top flight:

Abraham is in the kind of form sure to worry a Liverpool defence that's been creaking a little recently. The Reds have shipped four goals through five matches in the league and are still missing injured goalkeeper Alisson Becker.

Klopp can usually count on centre-back Virgil van Dijk to hold things together. However, the Netherlands international was guilty of a rare blunder during the 2-0 defeat to Napoli in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, when he misplaced a pass on the edge of his own area, allowing Fernando Llorente to score.

Left-back Andy Robertson had given away a penalty earlier, further underlining how shaky the Liverpool defence appeared in Naples. Abraham is primed to exploit any further weaknesses if he lives up to the billing Klopp has given him.

Chelsea will need to get plenty of support around their No. 9, something that may not be easy with Mount dealing with an injury. The 20-year-old was substituted just 16 minutes in to Chelsea's 1-0 home loss against Valencia in the Champions League on Tuesday with an apparent ankle problem.

Frank Lampard has hinted Mount could still feature against Liverpool, per MailOnline's Jack Kinnersley: "We'll make a call before the game."

Mount has formed a useful double act with Abraham, playing off the striker with subtle movement and impressive shooting power. With three goals to his credit already, Mount's presence will be missed if he's not fit enough to feature.

The focus will be on Abraham, though, while he approaches the toughest challenge of his burgeoning Chelsea senior career. If he can punish a defence the calibre of Liverpool's the way he has lesser opponents, Abraham will take a step closer to becoming the level of player Klopp thinks he is.