Roma striker Tammy Abraham has opened up on the messages he has received from former team-mate Reece James urging him to return to Chelsea.

Abraham is concluding his second season in Serie A, where he has established himself as one of the league's best strikers.

He made the surprising decision to move abroad having fallen out of favour under ex-Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel in 2021, bringing down the curtain on his Stamford Bridge career to head to the Stadio Olimpico.

In an interview with TMW, the 25-year-old cited the need to progress in his career and not be seen solely as a young academy graduate.

"Everything I knew was Chelsea apart from a few loan moves, but even now, I think it was the right time to leave. I was ready to take a step forward in my career; I didn't want to be considered a youngster or a player who had just come from the academy. It was time for me to spread my wings," Abraham said.

"Just before I left Chelsea, [Fikayo] Tomori went to AC Milan and we talked a lot...I remember the phone calls; none of us could believe what was happening. We had been at Chelsea our whole lives and in a moment we were walking away."

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Despite his departure, Abraham maintains contact with several Chelsea players as well as other stars at London sides.

"I still talk to so many Chelsea players, James always tells me to come back," he added.

"We grew up together and have known each other for years - players like [Mason] Mount, [Declan] Rice and [Eddie] Nketiah."

90min understands that Abraham's former club Aston Villa are confident of re-signing him, but he is focusing on ending the season strongly with Roma, who are halfway to the Europa League final.

"It would be great to win something again with Roma, and who knows what the future will hold," he said.

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This article was originally published on 90min as Tammy Abraham reveals Reece James wants him to return to Chelsea.