Elijah Adebayo: Walsall have gelled at last
Striker Elijah Adebayo says the Walsall team have ‘finally gelled’ as he insists confidence is flowing through the camp.
The Saddlers are on a five-game unbeaten run after putting in some of their best performances of the season in recent fixtures.
The 22-year-old has hit some form himself, with three goals in his last two games, and he says that belief is serving the squad well.
“You can just see the confidence in the camp when we go and take it out on to the pitch,” Adebayo said.
“We go and show that we can fight and put a performance on at home, which is great.
“I couldn’t really tell you what the formula is, we’ve just used the confidence in the camp and everyone has finally gelled – you can see that progression from the last 17 games to these 17 games.
“We’ve used every game as it comes, one by one, to take what we can and leave it all out on the pitch.
“Don’t leave the pitch thinking we could have given more, everyone giving 100 per cent out there.
“Sometimes we can be better with the ball but the hard work and desire is there, hard work beats talent at the end of the day.
“That’s the main thing, if everyone works hard then other qualities will come out.”
Manager Darrell Clarke echoed Adebayo’s comments about his side’s ‘outstanding’ recent form, but challenged them to improve even further.
“My lads have been honest as the day all season,” he said. Has the quality been good at times? No.
“Have we been getting better at that? Yeah, at times. For heart and desire – we monitor everything, the running stats, the sprints – all the targets they are hitting.
“Working hard has not been in question, so it’s important that we keep that focus.
“The quality of play in the last couple of homes games has been outstanding.”
