7: Hakeeb Adelakun
Lincoln City league record: 44 appearances, 5 goals.
Lincoln City did not sign Hakeeb Adelakun as a long-term development project. He arrived to make an immediate impact after the side had lost the creativity and attacking threat supplied by Brennan Johnson and Morgan Rogers. Adelakun had excelled for Scunthorpe United before earning a move to Bristol City, and although the Championship had not worked out for him, his spells with Hull City and Rotherham United suggested he could be a dangerous League One player. He had pace, power and the ability to create something at the top end of the pitch.
However, the move never consistently worked. Adelakun fell out of favour quickly and did not always appear to help himself, with the incident in the cup defeat against Carlisle United, when he was caught taking a drink as the opposition attacked and scored, becoming symbolic of his early struggles. At his best, he could be devastating, but there were too many matches in which he was almost anonymous. Loans followed, including a difficult spell with Gillingham, before he returned and enjoyed a modest redemption arc. Scoring for Tom Shaw’s side against Michael Appleton’s Charlton Athletic was a particularly satisfying moment, but five goals in 44 league appearances remained a disappointing return for an experienced attacker signed to replace a player who had delivered 15 goal involvements.
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