Former England international Darren Bent believes that Che Adams should turn down a move to Leeds United this month even if a deal is agreed between the clubs.

It's no secret that the Whites are keen on a striker and they had reportedly made Adams their top target.

The 23-year-old joined the Saints this summer after scoring 22 goals for Birmingham in the second tier but his time in the top-flight has not gone to plan, with Adams yet to score in 17 appearances.

Despite that, Bent told Football Insider that moving on so quickly could damage Adams' reputation moving forward, so he advised the striker to stay put.

"I still believe he is good enough to succeed in the Premier League, but the Premier League is very unforgiving. If he goes back to the Championship, people may just see him as a Championship player, he needs to stay in the Premier League and keep fighting.

"The moment he goes back to the Championship, people will say he’s not good enough, he’s a Championship player and he may even be put into the same category as Dwight Gayle, and I’d hate that to happen."

The verdict

You can understand where Bent is coming from as players are labelled very quickly and there's no doubt some would feel Adams can't cut it at the top level if he did leave in these circumstances.

However, joining Leeds shouldn't be seen as a bad thing. He would be working under a great coach and there's every chance he'd be back in the Premier League in six months and things could be different then.

As it is, a move seems unlikely anyway but if the chance arises to move to Elland Road then it would be tempting despite Bent's comments.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.