How is ex-Southampton FC star Mohammed Salisu getting on since leaving St Mary's? | OneFootball

It has been an excellent start to the season for Southampton in the Championship.

The Saints endured an incredibly disappointing campaign as they were relegated from the Premier League last season, bringing their 11-year stay in the top flight to an end, but they look set to be among the promotion contenders in the second tier in the year ahead.

Southampton suffered four consecutive defeats in September, but they extended their unbeaten run to eight games with a 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion at St Mary's on Saturday.

Russell Martin's side head into the international break sitting fourth in the table, and they are now just nine points behind second-placed Ipswich Town and leaders Leicester City.

It was a big summer of change at the club, with 18 players departing after relegation, including a host of high-profile names.

One player who left the club was defender Mohammed Salisu, with the 24-year-old making the move to French side Monaco for a fee of £17 million.

Salisu had spent the previous three years with the Saints having joined from Valladolid for £10.9 million in August 2020, and he was a regular for much of that time, but it was a disappointing end to his spell at the club.

His final appearance for Southampton came in March, and while former manager Ruben Selles insisted that Salisu was injured, The Athletic claimed that Salisu had been dropped from the squad due to doubts over his commitment.

It had seemed that Salisu was set to join Premier League side Fulham after the Cottagers agreed a £15 million deal, but he instead made the move to France, and we looked at how the defender has fared at his new club.

How is Mohammed Salisu getting on since his move to Monaco from Southampton?

Salisu is yet to make his debut for Monaco due to a groin injury, and it could be tough for him to break into the team when he returns to fitness.

Monaco are currently third in the Ligue 1 table, three points behind leaders Paris Saint-Germain, having picked up 24 points from their first 12 games.

Salisu is closing in on a return, with head coach Adi Hutter stating that he "is on the right path" prior to the 0-0 draw at Le Havre on Saturday.

However, Hutter has warned Salisu that he will need to fight for his place, with Soungoutou Magassa currently impressing in the team.

"It’s true that he’s been a very good solution since the start of the season to compensate for absences. We must not forget that he is a midfielder by trade. He is improving, and I am very happy with his performances. He had some time for adaptation to play in what is a new position for him, but he is a young man who has a lot of talent," Hutter told the club's official website.

"He has his place in the team at the moment, so Mohammed Salisu will have to fight to get his."

Salisu was a consistent performer during his time at Southampton, but the Saints currently have plenty of strong defensive options, such as Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Jan Bednarek, Jack Stephens and Mason Holgate, and he has not been missed at St Mary's so far.