Former Chelsea defender Mario Melchiot has called on Tammy Abraham to channel his inner ‘bad boy’.
Abraham is one of three youngsters to be handed a starting role in his side this season, and bagged a hat-trick against Wolves two weeks ago.
But the 21-year-old, who is yet to complete 90 minutes this season, was guilty of missing a guilt edge opportunity in Sunday's defeat to Liverpool at Stamford Bridge.
And Melchiot, speaking on talkSPORT on Monday morning, is calling on the youngster to add a bit more aggression to his game.
He said: “Tammy Abraham is a real finisher but, as much as I like him as a player, he’s sometimes got to be more of a bad boy.
“You know why? When you play against players like Virgil van Dijk, the striker has to have a bit of badness in him. A bit of nastiness.
“OK, look at the guys I played against, like Ryan Giggs. He was so elegant, he dribbled beautifully, but trust me, if I kicked him he would have got up and either kicked me back or found a way to do it – he was one of the best players I played against.
“Tammy needs that too. As cute as he looks, he’s young, fresh and exciting to watch, he needs to have that.
“If you look at Drogba, Hasselbaink, these guys weren’t cute when you played against them.
"Be a little bit of a bad boy! Bring that badness out of you!”
