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Tammy Abraham admits being back in Bristol means "everything" to him and hopes the Robins can join Aston Villa in the Championship play-offs by the end of the season.

Abraham is back in the city which helped shape him as a professional striker as part of Aidy Boothroyd's England Under-21 squad as they take on Poland at Ashton Gate on Thursday in what may be a friendly but will be an extra special moment for the forward.

City head coach Lee Johnson brought the then-19-year-old to the West Country on loan from Chelsea for the 2016/17 season and helped turn him into one of English football's most promising strikers as he scored 26 goals in 48 games in all competitions.

An ill-fated switch to Swansea followed but Abraham has found a temporary home again at Villa where he has found the target 22 times to fire Dean Smith's side up the Championship table, replacing City in the top six.

"It means everything to me. That's my first year of exposure to men's football," Abraham said, after reporting for England duty at the team's base in Congresbury on Monday.

"They made me feel like home as soon as I stepped foot there so it's always heartwarming to go back there."

Abraham reveals he still keeps in touch with Johnson and the two have exchanged a few messages over the course of the campaign and the race to secure Premier League promotion intensifies.

(Image: Getty)

"Yeah he does, now and again, we have words" he added. "When they were doing well and in the play-offs, I sent him a nice message saying, 'well done, just keep going' ... I won't say what he replied.

"I'm at Aston Villa so I've got to want Aston Villa to push for it, but it'll be nice for both of us to be in the play-offs at the end of the season."

It proved a transformative season for Abraham at BS3 as he developed from a prolific academy prospect at Chelsea into one of the Championship's most consistent frontmen, finishing as City's top scorer and collecting a number of individuals awards including Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year.

Two major highlights stand out for him when looking back on that campaign: scoring against a Huddersfield team featuring Chelsea academy colleagues Kasey Palmer and Isaiah Brown and the recognition he received at the end of the season.

"There were two big ones that stand out for me," he said. "At Huddersfield, two of my mates from Chelsea were at Huddersfield at the time. It was a big game for me, I went to sleep early that night. I remember I scored and I was over the moon.

"And then at the end of the season awards, I think I won like 10 awards, so those moments definitely stand out for me."

Johnson has tried to bring Abraham back to Ashton Gate but wages have proven the main stumbling block with the 21-year-old earning in excess of £60,000-a-week at Chelsea, beyond City's budget.