Exclusive: Jake Clarke-Salter talks QPR future, Marti Cifuentes, leaving Chelsea and injury struggles | OneFootball

The last two years have been something of a roller coaster ride for Jake Clarke-Salter but both Queens Park Rangers and the defender are in a very positive place at the close of 2023/24.

Having made the move across West London from Chelsea to Loftus Road on a free transfer in the summer of 2022, securing a permanent fresh start after years as part of the Cobham loan army, the centre-back was ready to write his own story away from the Blues but injuries plagued his debut season in W12.

Injury woes

Having missed the early weeks of the 2022/23 campaign with a hamstring issue, Clarke-Salter established himself as part of the Michael Beale side that rose to second in the Championship but the season quickly turned sour – for both player and club.

Injuries meant the defender played just eight times from November onwards while Beale's departure, a slump in form, and an ill-fated spell with Neil Critchley at the helm saw the R's sucked into a relegation battle.

The West Londoners narrowly avoided the drop after the appointment of Gareth Ainsworth but it was a difficult period for the former England age-group international as he was forced to watch on from the sidelines for much of the run-in.

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, via CopyBet, he said: "Last season, I came to QPR and had some injuries again, which was devastating for me. Maybe it doesn't look like that from the outside but it really affected me. I wanted to be out there with the lads and help them.

"Last year really affected me. I'm someone who takes great pride in playing games and trying to help the lads as much as possible. To watch them last year and not be able to help them was really difficult for me, I know the fans don't see that side. They might think I didn't care but it was the complete opposite. I'm just happy I'm back fit and the team is on the up. That's the main thing for me now, stay fit and keep helping the team."

The Marti Cifuentes effect

Ainsworth and the R's squad were bullish that a new campaign would bring new hope and new fortunes. That was not the case as a woeful start to 2023/24 saw the manager sacked after a sixth straight defeat left the Hoops six points from safety in 23rd with only eight points from 14 games.

The appointment of Marti Cifuentes – a fairly unknown Spanish coach from the Swedish top tier – would prove the turning point and revitalise a club that looked destined for relegation to League One.

Key to Cifuentes' success at Loftus Road has been a transformed defensive record. The R's had one of the leakiest backlines in the Championship under Ainsworth (26 goals conceded in 14 games) but since the arrival of their saviour, only promotion hopefuls Leeds United have conceded fewer goals than them (32 in 32 games).

Clarke-Salter's return to full fitness has undoubtedly helped – though he is clear that it has been a team-wide effort that Cifuentes deserves the credit for.

He said: "I think it's down to the whole team. The way we have pressed and the way we are set up all contribute to our defensive record. You have to give a lot of praise to the gaffer, he has come in and set us up in a way that suits the squad we have. We want to implement his style on the ball a lot more as well in the future but we've been really solid defensively so that's a really positive thing going forward.

"The manager has not specifically helped a part of my game but he's just reassured me, as he has with the rest of the squad, that we are good players and just given us a bit of belief again, which was lacking. I can't give the gaffer enough praise for how he's praised us and how he's taken to us as well."

Summer signing Steve Cook, whose move from Nottingham Forest has proven a masterstroke, has formed a brilliant central defensive partnership with Clarke-Salter that has the foundation on which the newfound success has been built. It speaks volumes that the former was named the QPR Supporters' Player of the Year award while the latter scooped the Ray Jones Players’ Player of the Year gong.

"First of all, he's a really great guy off the pitch," Clake-Salter (26) noted of his 33-year-old accomplice. "That helps as well. I feel like we suit each other quite well – he's vastly experienced and I'm younger so he's given me some tips and I would say I've learned a lot from him this season as well. I think we've formed a good partnership and hopefully, that's something we can continue into next season."

Marti Cifuentes "one of the best I've worked with"

Having come through at Chelsea, been part of the England youth setup, and enjoyed loan spells at Bristol Rovers, Sunderland, Vitesse, Birmingham City and Coventry City before joining QPR, Clarke-Salter has worked under plenty of coaches, including some notable names, but he considers Cifuentes among the very best of them.

He explained: "He's one of the best I've worked with. I think everyone can see from the outside the effect he's had on the team and our dramatic improvements. The gaffer is, rightly so, getting a lot of plaudits and hopefully, that can continue into next season."

Avoiding relegation is serious business but the manager's playful side has been central to the blossoming dressing room relationship.

"I think he's both (serious and funny)," the defender added. "It's important for a manager to have both sides – the serious side and the good relationship with the players, which he does have. It's a really good blend."

The disconnect between manager, player and fans was all too clear to see earlier in the season but the journey they've been on in recent months has pulled them tight back together – reestablishing a strong link between the terraces and the pitch.

Quizzed on whether he was enjoying that newfound relationship, Clarke-Salter said: "100% but I think that comes with results as well. Since the gaffer's come in, we have picked up a lot more points and played better football so naturally that comes with the fans getting behind us a bit more. I can't thank them enough, they've helped us get over the line and hopefully, that relationship will continue as well as the club and players continue to grow."

A season that for long periods looked doomed to end in relegation finished with the R's six points above the drop zone. They secured survival with a remarkable 4-0 hammering of Leeds, all but killing the Whites' automatic promotion hopes off, and the way they've raised their game against top sides means that there is a realistic hope that they can be a real force in the Championship next season.

"We can't forget that it's been a disappointing season for us in all aspects," Clark-Salter reflected. "We don't want to be near the bottom of the table. A poor start and since the gaffer has come in, we've really shown togetherness and shown we're a good team. We've beaten some good teams and could've beaten a few more. We've shown we're a good side so some positives definitely.

"We've struggled against the teams around us and picked up better results against the teams in the top half of the table but if we want to be competitive next year and reach the heights we want to reach, we need to really pick up points against teams across the league and implement our game style in each match.

"We'll have a break, it's needed after the season we've had, it's been draining. I can only imagine what it's been like for the fans watching on. We'll come back in the summer ready to go again and talk about it then."

Jake Clarke-Salter's QPR future

After years down the pecking order at Chelsea and out on loan at other clubs, Clarke-Salter feels as though he has found a home at Loftus Road.

"If I'm being totally honest with myself, I had a lot of ambition growing up at Chelsea – captaining Chelsea and England youth sides – and I had some injuries along the way that has hindered my career so to have a home now. To be able to stay fit this season, which I always knew would come around again. I'm confident now that I can put those injuries behind me and I'm just happy now at QPR. I have a home, I had a good season in the end and I'm just looking forward to the future."

But there are still question marks over whether he will be part of the R's squad by the time the 2024/25 campaign kicks off. His impressive performances have drawn links north of the border in the past while a host of Premier League clubs, including Burnley, Crystal Palace and Wolves, and Championship rivals like Stoke City are thought to now be keen with the R's facing a battle to keep hold of him.

Recent reports suggest there is a "loose agreement" in place between Clarke-Salter and the West London club that could pave the way for him to join a top flight club while potential valuations range from £5 million up to £10 million.

The defender makes it no secret that returning to the Premier League is his dream. His preference would be to do that in blue and white hoops but he accepts that it could mean leaving the club in a future window.

He said: "When I left Chelsea I was 24, I'm 26 now. I'm now trying to build my own legacy outside of Chelsea and trying to build up my career and hopefully progress a lot with QPR.

"The ambition for me personally is to be a Premier League player eventually, something I believe I have the capability to do. Hopefully, I can do that with QPR, the club is one the up and there are some exciting times ahead."

He concluded: "I don't have Twitter or anything so I don't see any of the rumours, people might send it to me and stuff but I wasn't really interested in anything at that point, it was just about securing safety of QPR and playing as well as I can.

"Whatever happens in the summer, we'll see. I don't have a crystal ball but I'm really happy at QPR and hopefully, we can have a good season next year."