Many hoped that the trip to Pompey would be the game that got Che Adams on the goal trail, but it showed that the strain of not scoring so far is weighing heavily on his shoulders.

Most Saints fans I have spoken to have been impressed by some of the work Che Adams has done, at Sheffield United his goal drought was almost broken but thwarted by the post and a world class save by the keeper and that has left the player with the weight of the world on his shoulders.

So far Ralph Hasenhuttl has adopted the Dolly Parton approach to management and has stood by his man, but it is becoming clear that tactic has not worked.

Saints fans have not got on Adams's back, they can see that he is putting the effort in and that he has something about him and are sticking with him but that could change, we don't want that and a different approach is needed to remedy the situation and that is giving Che a rest.

You feel that once he gets a goal then his confidence will rise and they will flow, but getting that goal is proving hard, droughts like this are often ended not by the spectacular, but by the flukiest goals seen.

So Ralph needs to take the pressure off him and take him out of the firing line, let others take the responsibility in the starting line up and bring him on as a sub when the pressure is off.

At Spurs it will be a tough game, if he runs around for 90 minutes and doesn't score then it will help no one least of all him, but coming off the bench is a different matter, at best he could score a vital goal and be a hero, at worst it might just be a consolation but he will have broken his duck.

So on Saturday I think Che would be better starting on the bench, watching the action to start with will make him hungry to get on hungry to get a goal and re invigorate him with the enthusiasm he had in earlier games but has been missing a little in the last two especially at Fratton Park.

Photo: Action Images

schatfield added 13:27 - Sep 26 the dolly parton approach....lol. great line.
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joedatsun added 13:59 - Sep 26 Agreed...buy Tammy Wynette, surely?
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wibbersda added 15:34 - Sep 26 Needs a rest...haha. If anything he needs to work harder on his game.
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underweststand added 16:07 - Sep 26 Strikers need to score goals and sometimes one goal can start a landslide. The longer they go goal-less ....the more it plays on the mind. Many of us can recall James Beattie starting a season in "2000-something" by going 10 games without scoring then went on a scoring spree that ended with 23 goals and only one behind Thierry Henry........Ah those were the days. If Che can't break his duck against Spurs, then surely Ralph must give him a chance of game time with U23's and let him score a few at the lower level to help his confidence.

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bstokesaint added 18:09 - Sep 26 I think he needs a rest and some time to observe from the sidelines. I’m convinced he’s got what it takes, but no need to pile the pressure on him. No one will be more frustrated than he is with himself I’m sure.
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SanMarco added 20:11 - Sep 26 Yep - Tammy Wynette and more memorably the Blues Brothers...
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davidargyll added 07:13 - Sep 27 What worries me is that Che will end up as the Shane Long of 2019/20 - who incidentally I now think is great but my goodness we had to wait...!
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aceofthebase added 08:32 - Sep 27 I agree he needs to play a supportive role but I think a 'rest' is not quite the correct word
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