Goal number six of season for Scotland World Cup hopeful
Scotland striker Che Adams netted a crucial winner for Torino to ease their Serie A relegation fears amid speculation linking him with a move to the Premier League.
Adams scored the only goal of the match to seal a 1-0 home victory over Lecce on Sunday that provided his club with some much-needed breathing space at the bottom of the table.
A run of four consecutive league defeats had seen Torino slip down from their mid-table comfort zone towards the lower reaches of the Italian top flight. Before kick-off at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, they sat in 13th place, just six points ahead of the drop zone.
That gap has now been increased to nine points thanks to Adams' first goal in Serie A since November 30, although the 29-year-old did notch a double in a 3-2 win over Roma in the Coppa Italia on January 13 with a quarter-final to come against Inter Milan at the San Siro this Wednesday.
Che Adams netted for Torino in the 1-0 victory over Lecce in Serie A on Sunday. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)placeholder image
Che Adams netted for Torino in the 1-0 victory over Lecce in Serie A on Sunday. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Whether Adams remains at Il Toro for that match depends on events on Monday’s transfer deadline day amid reports that Wolves are interested in taking the striker back to the Premier League.
Against Lecce, Adams peeled off his marker at the back post to fire home a first-time volley from a Nikola Vlašić cross on 29 minutes for his sixth goal of the season. He had a similar chance in the second-half to double his tally but missed the target. His contribution earned him the Panini Player of the Match award.
The former Southampton man is hoping to lead the line for Scotland at the World Cup this summer - and his latest goal will do his cause no harm with his record in Italian football now reading 16 goals in 62 appearances (47 starts).
Adams, who has 11 goals in 45 caps, has been joined in Serie A by Kieron Bowie after his fellow Scotland international completed a £7million transfer from Hibs to Hellas Verona on Friday.
Bowie was not registered in time so could only watch on as his new side crashed to a 4-0 defeat at Cagliari on Saturday to drop to the foot of the table, four points from safety.
The 23-year-old is expected to make his Verona debut when they host fellow relegation strugglers Pisa in a pivotal match at Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi on Friday evening.
Kieron Bowie is expected to make his Hellas Verona debut in a Serie A relegation crunch match against Pisa on Friday.placeholder image
Kieron Bowie is expected to make his Hellas Verona debut in a Serie A relegation crunch match against Pisa on Friday. | SNS Group
Elsewhere in Serie A this weekend, Scott McTominay's Napoli got back to winning ways with a 2-1 victory over Fiorentina at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. For the 15th match in succession, McTominay completed the whole 90 minutes for Napoli amid their gruelling schedule. The defending champions remain nine points behind leaders Inter Milan, who won 2-0 at Cremonese.
Josh Doig made it back-to-back wins with Sassuolo, who climbed to 10th in the table after a 3-1 victory away to Pisa, with the former Hibs full-back completing the full 90 minutes.
Read More
Lennon Miller will hope for another start when Udinese host Roma on Monday night with the 19-year-old former Motherwell midfielder beginning to find his feet in Serie A having been included in the first XI for three of his side's last four matches - avoiding defeat each time.
Lewis Ferguson and Bologna were inactive this weekend but will look for an improvement in recent form when they host Milan in Serie A on Tuesday night with I Rossoblù managing only one victory in their last 12 matches in all competitions.