Che Adams has hit the goal trail to leave Scotland head coach Steve Clarke with the pleasing prospect of having two in-form strikers at his disposal going into the European Championships this summer.

Lawrence Shankland has almost certainly booked his seat on the plane to Germany with the Hearts captain's impressive 29-goal tally in all competitions including a last-minute equaliser for Scotland away to Georgia in November.

Indeed, for much of the campaign Shankland has been the only recognised Scotland international finding the net with any degree of regularity, leading to a clamour in some quarters for the 28-year-old to lead the line at the Euros.

Southampton's Che Adams puts the ball past Preston North End goalkeeper Freddie Woodman to score his second goal of the game in Tuesday's 3-0 win at St Mary's.

However, Southampton striker Adams has answered back with a rich vein of scoring form of his own at just the right time as the tournament opener against the hosts looms large on the horizon less than two months away.

His classy double in a 3-0 win over Preston North End on Tuesday night made it five goals in his last five games and took his tally for the campaign to 17, with the first of his brace also bringing up his 100th goal in senior football.

Adams struggled to hit the proverbial barn door as he went more than three months without a goal earlier in the campaign but since breaking his barren spell in December he has never gone more than two matches without finding the net.

His goals are going a long way towards keeping Saints in the hunt for automatic promotion to the Premier League with his manager Russell Martin, who was capped 29 times by Scotland, claiming he now "looks like he's going to score all the time.”

Adams' purple patch will have certainly caught the eye of Clarke, who only used the Saints forward as a second half substitute for both the 4-0 defeat to Netherlands and the 1-0 loss to Northern Ireland last month.

While Shankland started in Amsterdam, it was Dykes who got the nod against Michael O'Neill's side at Hampden but the Queens Park Rangers striker barely had a sniff on a night that was in keeping with his season so far, with just five goals scored across 40 appearances for his club as he battles for his starting position.

Based on form, it would seem a straight battle between Shankland and Adams to start against the Germans in Munich in the opening match of the tournament on June 14. Adams is out of contract in the summer with Everton, Wolves, Fulham and Crystal Palace all rumoured to be showing an interest.

"He's been amazing," Saints boss Martin said. "He's really in flow at the moment, his energy's good. He's in a really good place. He understands what's expected of him. I think he's in a really good place. I think he's free.

"He's really excited at the opportunity in front of him to try and help this club get back to the Premier League, which is perfect for him and everyone else.

"I'm really enjoying working with him. He's a great character. I've said this to you so many times. He is a top man. We need to keep him in this place for as long as possible because he looks like he's going to score all the time."

Che Adams rivalling Lawrence Shankland for Scotland Euro 2024 starting slot with red-hot Southampton form

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