Che Adams loses place in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s starting eleven with Minamino preferred
Last Updated: February 14, 2021 2:23 pm
Hasenhuttl hails special Minamino
Southampton secured the deadline day acquisition of Takumi Minamino from Liverpool last week, on loan until the end of the season. And Saints head coach Ralph Hasenhuttl was exceptionally pleased with the piece of business the club had done:
“I spoke with Jurgen (Klopp) – he said he didn’t have the chance to give him enough time to play,” Hasenhuttl said. “I’m sure when he played, he did good games and scored a few goals.”
“He’s a very special player for me not because of his physical strength but more of his way of playing football. He is very quick in his mind, has good decision-making, knows about our pressing style and hopefully a lot of running.”
Minamino on his Southampton debut 👏
Instant impact 💥pic.twitter.com/DZ7V9dj7Yn
— The Anfield Wrap (@TheAnfieldWrap) February 6, 2021
“He knows when you come to me you have to run a lot but that’s not a problem for him. He didn’t play a lot in the past games so he’ll also need time to step up but we had a good experience with Theo (Walcott) where he helped us immediately and hopefully he does the same.”
The 26-year old’s arrival, though, has led to questions regarding other members of Southampton’s squad, which are now seemingly being answered in the form of the Austrian head coach’s team selection.
Adams lack of goals costs place
The faith which Hasenhuttl has shown in Minamino means that forward Che Adams has now dropped to the bench, with the Japanese international starting against Wolves in a key clash between the clubs.
Three changes for #SaintsFC 📝
Here’s the team for today’s clash with #Wolves: pic.twitter.com/HRaEYTthAt
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) February 14, 2021
The Southampton boss was asked about the goal drought which Adams has been experiencing since a 3-0 win over Sheffield United more than 10 games ago.
“Like all the other players, I’ve seen him better, for sure,” Hasenhuttl explained to the Daily Echo. “We miss the goals from him and from Ingsy (Danny Ings) at the moment. This is a little bit of a problem.
“Sometimes when we have chances, we cannot finalise. But it’s all about believing in what you are doing, working on your decision-making and don’t struggle too much about ‘what if I don’t find the target?’
SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 13: Che Adams of Southampton celebrates with teammates Jannik Vestergaard, Danny Ings and Theo Walcott after scoring their team’s first goal during the Premier League match between Southampton and Sheffield United at St Mary’s Stadium on December 13, 2020 in Southampton, England. A limited number of spectators (2000) are welcomed back to stadiums to watch elite football across England. This was following easing of restrictions on spectators in tiers one and two areas only. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
It seems that the former RB Leipzig boss has sympathy for his striker, based on his latest comments.
“It’s always a problem for a striker when he doesn’t score. I remember I also had some parts in my career where I couldn’t find the goal.”
“But then suddenly you don’t think about it and you score every game, so it’s crazy.”
Yet Adams’ absence from the Saints’ starting line-up again on Sunday suggests that Hasenhuttl could be looking to Minamino to be his ‘goal-getter’, until the end of the season at least.
Why Liverpool allowed Minamino to join Southampton
Che Adams seemingly missing from Southampton training as Shane Long could be in line for start
This article was edited by Conor Laird.
Southampton betting odds, next game:
Everton vs Southampton odds: result, both teams to score, correct score & goalscorers
| Everton vs Southampton Result/Both teams score | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| Everton | 10/3 | 11/4 |
| Southampton | 11/2 | 5/1 |
| Draw | 7/2 | 10/1 |
| Everton vs Southampton Goalscorers | First | Last | Anytime |
|---|---|---|---|
| Danny Ings | 7/4 | 7/4 | 6/5 |
| Dominic Calvert-Lewin | 2/1 | 2/1 | 5/4 |
| de Andrade Richarlison | 11/4 | 11/4 | 7/4 |
| Joshua King | 10/3 | 10/3 | 21/10 |
| Che Adams | 7/2 | 7/2 | 5/2 |
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| 2 | Manchester United FC | 25 | 21 | 49 |
| 3 | Leicester City FC | 25 | 17 | 49 |
| 4 | West Ham United FC | 25 | 10 | 45 |
| 5 | Chelsea FC | 25 | 16 | 43 |
| 6 | Liverpool FC | 25 | 11 | 40 |
| 7 | Everton FC | 24 | 4 | 40 |
| 8 | Aston Villa FC | 23 | 11 | 36 |
| 9 | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 24 | 10 | 36 |
| 10 | Leeds United | 25 | 0 | 35 |
| 11 | Arsenal FC | 25 | 5 | 34 |
| 12 | Wolverhampton Wanderers FC | 25 | -6 | 33 |
| 13 | Crystal Palace FC | 25 | -14 | 32 |
| 14 | Southampton FC | 25 | -12 | 30 |
| 15 | Burnley FC | 25 | -12 | 28 |
| 16 | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 25 | -6 | 26 |
| 17 | Newcastle United FC | 25 | -17 | 25 |
| 18 | Fulham FC | 25 | -11 | 22 |
| 19 | West Bromwich Albion | 25 | -36 | 14 |
| 20 | Sheffield United FC | 25 | -26 | 11 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 17 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 15 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 13 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 13 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 13 |
| Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 13 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 12 |
| Gundogan, Ilkay | Manchester City FC | 11 |
| Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United FC | 10 |
| Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa FC | 10 |
| Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 9 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 9 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City FC | 9 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace FC | 9 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 8 |
| Ings, Danny | Southampton FC | 8 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 8 |
| Aubameyang, Pierre-Emerick | Arsenal FC | 8 |
| Soucek, Tomas | West Ham United FC | 8 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 7 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bellerin, Hector | Arsenal FC | 0 | 8 |
| Gallagher, Conor | West Bromwich Albion | 0 | 8 |
| Lundstram, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 6 |
| Evans, Jonny | Leicester City FC | 0 | 7 |
| Egan, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 6 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 1 | 6 |
| Milivojevic, Luka | Crystal Palace FC | 1 | 6 |
| Hayden, Isaac | Newcastle United FC | 0 | 7 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 6 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 6 |
| Hojbjerg, Pierre | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 0 | 6 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 5 |
| Maguire, Harry | Manchester United FC | 0 | 6 |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 6 |
| Luiz, Douglas | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 5 |
| Kante, N`Golo | Chelsea FC | 0 | 6 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 0 | 5 |
| Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 0 | 5 |
| Dallas, Stuart | Leeds United | 0 | 5 |
| Soucek, Tomas | West Ham United FC | 1 | 4 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 11 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 10 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 10 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City FC | 9 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 6 |
| Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 6 |
| Cresswell, Aaron | West Ham United FC | 6 |
| Digne, Lucas | Everton FC | 6 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 5 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 5 |
| Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 5 |
| Werner, Timo | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 5 |
| Robertson, Andrew | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Shaw, Luke | Manchester United FC | 5 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 4 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 4 |
| Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United FC | 4 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City FC | 4 |
