Roma striker Tammy Abraham has revealed that Jose Mourinho's influence was the main reason why he rejected moving to Arsenal in the summer from Chelsea.
Abraham opted to move abroad instead of staying in the Premier League - an outcome that came as a relief to Chelsea fans, and a bit of a disappointment to many Gunners supporters.
The No.9's decision to snub a move to the Emirates Stadium meant that Alexandre Lacazette stayed. despite reports surfacing in the summer that the Frenchmen was seen as surplus to requirements by manager Mikel Arteta.
On a personal level, the Cobham academy graduate has hit the ground well in Italy, contributing six-goal involvements in 10 appearances so far this season under Mourinho as his £40million transfer seemingly looks an astute move from the Serie A side.
As a reward for his impressive form, England manager Gareth Southgate has called him up to the squad to face Andorra and Hungary over the October international break.
In the build-up to the game against the former of the opponents, the 24-year-old has opened up on the summer and what was the main influence in swaying him to snub a stay in his home country.
"I picked up the phone and he was like: 'Do you want to enjoy some sun or stay in the rain?' I laughed," Abraham said on Mourinho via the Daily Mail.
"At first I didn't think much of it when we were speaking. My mindset was that I wanted to be in the Premier League. I felt like it was home, being around London, being around England.
"But when he speaks, you listen. He is a good man and has helped me a lot so far and hopefully we can build on it.
"I had different options. But I spoke to Jose and he had a goal, I could see where he wanted Roma to go and I wanted to be part of the process.
"He really put his trust in me, so he was a big reason why I chose Roma."
Abraham then went on to explain how he has adapted so far to his new and unfamiliar surroundings.
He said: "'I love learning. From a young age I've always wanted to travel around the world, to learn different languages and this has given me the opportunity to learn something new.
"I'm out in Italy and most of the time I'm by myself, so I need to find something to keep me entertained. I like learning Italian, so hopefully if you give me a couple of months, I could be fluent.
"It's the different culture, food, visiting places you've never been to before. It's new to me but very exciting. I have seen the Colosseum but I have not been inside it. That is one thing I have to do when I get back."
