Charlie Adam admits 'this isn't what I signed up for' as midfielder lambasts Dundee's poor form

Marquee signing Charlie Adam has revealed his discontent with Dundee's poor start to the season while also admitting that his own form has not been good enough.

Charlie Adam cuts a frustrated figure during Dundee's defeat to Ayr United at Somerset Park, on November 21, 2020 (Photo by Mark Scates / SNS Group)

After opening their Scottish Championship campaign with a harrowing 6-2 defeat at Hearts, the Dark Blues have picked up just five points from their first five league matches and find themselves well off the early pace set by league leaders Dunfermline Athletic.

The latest setback came at Somerset Park on Saturday in a dismal 2-0 defeat at the hands of Ayr United which has left the Dens Park men languishing in seventh place, and led to some “home truths” in the away dressing room.

Former Rangers, Liverpool and Scotland midfielder Adam admitted that his return to his boyhood club has not gone as planned thus far as he urged under-performing players to step up and prove they can handle the pressure.

“We are a football club going through a bad time at the moment on the pitch,” he told the Evening Telegraph. “It’s not acceptable, it’s as simple as that.

“There were a few home truths told after the game. Sometimes you need to be told.

“This is a big football club and if you can’t handle the pressure of playing for Dundee in the Championship then going to the next level isn’t going to happen.

“Saturday was a tough afternoon for everybody and there were harsh words said in the dressing-room but they needed to be said because it’s been going on for weeks now.

“It’s a combination of errors we are making, not just one player but it’s different areas of the pitch.

“Are we a soft touch? It’s hard to say but we need to react against Hibs on Saturday and then against Arbroath after that.

“The manager could leave 11 players out this weekend, he’s made it that clear that’s how bad we were at Ayr.

“It’s a harsh lesson, a reality check for us – again. We need to look at ourselves because this is a big football club in this division.

“This isn’t what I signed up for, I came here to be successful in this team.”

Adam gave his backing to under-fire manager James McPake stressing that it is up to the players to solve the issues currently facing the side.

“Right now we need to find a solution, it’s not about tactics, it’s about us as a group of players finding a solution ourselves,” added the 34-year-old playmaker.

“That’s when you find out that you have a good team because the players sort the problem themselves.

“It’s tough to take and the supporters have the right to give their opinion.

“It doesn’t matter what your name is whether you are Charlie Adam or Max Anderson, names don’t matter, it’s about winning football matches.

“At the moment, I as a player am not contributing to it. That’s a fact.

“I signed up to try to be successful here, it’s not working right now.

“We have a good manager here, a young ambitious manager who I am delighted to be working with.

“We need to find a solution as a group.”

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