Fresh from his magic 60-yard effort against Chelsea, Stoke made the worrying decision to sign Charlie Adam down to a new contract.
One would hope that a single long range punt was not the deciding factor in his longer term future at the club, but the search for other reasoning to tie down the Scot is difficult. A few magnificent strikes or Hollywood passes a season offers little explanation for keeping a player so despised in the squad.
Of course, if every club were to remove any unpopular player from the club it would be absurd, but Stoke are trying to rebuild their reputation and Charlie Adam holds that back.
His time at Stoke hasn’t been quite the damp squib of his Liverpool spell and Adam’s time in the Potteries has seen him become a crowd favourite. At 29, Charlie Adam looks like a man of about double his age and probably is more suited to sitting in the local with a pint of the strongest ale in the house.
His popularity with Stoke fans seems to be largely down to his brutal approach in the tackle and natural affiliation to any player who provides stunning strikes and is appearing to try the spectacular.
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Popularity with fans may be a partial explanation for his prolonged stay at the Britannia, or it could just be a miraculous misjudgement from Hughes. Adam, in the absence of Bojan, has often been competing with Stephen Ireland for the position of the most advanced midfielder. His continued presence in the squad has made an obstacle for Ireland’s career at Stoke, despite Stoke looking at their most creative with him behind the striker.
Registering seven goals and an assist last season doesn’t make Adam’s contract sound like a poor decision, even if the Scot only started 15 games. Adam’s fitness would be the first thing to suggest it is time to part ways, never looking like an athlete is one thing but his clear inability to complete 90 minutes is a man that has to be carried by the rest of the team.
In the modern game it is hard to imagine a side having a player so clearly short of fitness and Stoke may begin to regret the decision if Adam is required to be a regular at any point in the upcoming campaign.
Adam’s fitness is not just limiting in his availability, but it slows down a Stoke team that are developing their new style based around pace down the wings and the ability to run in behind of Mame Diouf. As the side works around the pace of Diouf, Arnautovic and Moses (who is likely to join on a permanent deal this summer), Adam’s lack of mobility brings a disappointing reminder of the Tony Pulis era.
A further problem with Charlie Adam – yes, there are quite a few – is his discipline. Countless suspensions, often retrospective, have left Stoke short of a man for future matches and a player of Adam’s weaknesses is hardly worth the suspension liability he so often proves himself to be.
Aside from the concern of suspension, Stoke are attempting to go through a rebranding following Pulis’ reign and Adam’s thuggish mentality and unpopularity are not assisting the club in their change. While some fans see him as a vital substitute to come on and make things happen, his career at Stoke has been restricting the side from changing into a much more fluid side.
A new contract does not mean he is certainly going to be around next season, yet Adam should be the first man on his way out of the Britannia this summer.
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