England’s Abraham will no longer be Mr Nice Guy

TAMMY ABRAHAM is one of the nice guys. Engaging, smiling, charming.

Too nice, if you ask Jose Mourinho, the Roma boss who has told his England striker: ‘Stop being nice, be a monster.’

Abraham, who completed his £35million move to Roma from Chelsea in the summer, came off the bench in England’s win over Albania and could lead the line against San Marino tomorrow when World Cup qualification is expected to be secured. The 24-year-old grins when asked what Mourinho has taught him during his time at Roma.

‘Just to be a monster, really,’ he says. ‘One of the things he said was I was too much of a nice player and that you have to show that aggressiveness as you are getting older as a striker.

‘It’s not always about being nice on the pitch. You need that character, you need that presence to frighten defenders and I think that’s something I’m learning and getting better at.’

Abraham admits he has found the move tough. He wants to emulate Romelu Lukaku, who turned himself into a complete striker by testing himself against miserly Italian defences at Inter.

So far this season, Abraham has netted three goals in 12 Serie A games with another couple in the Europa Conference League.

‘One thing I didn’t expect was it to be so tough,’ he says. ‘Players are very smart and defending is very important in the Italian style of play. In England, we are so used to attack, attack, attack and for me it’s about learning the other way, how to break down those teams.

‘You see the likes of Lukaku who have gone abroad and come back to England and for me it’s about developing myself.’

Kick-off: Tomorrow, 7.45pm, San Marino Stadium. LIVE on STV.