Stoke midfielder Charlie Adam: We must relieve pressure on manager Mark Hughes

Stoke’s Charlie Adam says it is the players’ responsibility to change the club's fortunes ahead of the huge relegation crunch tie with West Ham on Saturday.

The Potters have won only one of their last seven league games and lie dangerously close to the drop zone, with pressure mounting on boss Mark Hughes.

Speaking to the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast, Adam believes the players must help out their struggling manager.

He said: “The manager’s under a lot of pressure because of results and fans are a bit disgruntled, but it’s only the players who can change that round.

“We take it on our chest to go out on Saturday.

“We are in this dirty patch but we need to get through it and we will do because we’ve got good players and a very good manager.

“We just have to keep strong and hope the luck will come to us in the end.”

Saturday's game will also see the Potters welcome back former player Marko Arnautovic after his £25million move to the Hammers in the summer.

Ex-Stoke man Matthew Etherington told talkSPORT on Friday the Austrian will get a frosty reception, and Adam said they will be keeping a close eye on their former team-mate.

He added: “Marko was a wonderful player for us. We know what he can do.

“But also we know that we can hurt them going the other way.

“It’ll be good to see him. I’m not so sure if I’m in his good books, but I’ll look forward to seeing him!”