Southampton's comeback star adamant to succeed amid first team challenges | OneFootball

Southampton forward Kamaldeen Sulemana has shown massive improvement under Ivan Juric. Being in his best form ever, Sulemana hopes to justify the £22m tag fans often associate with him.

You would agree that it's the fans who drive the much-needed passion and emotions in the Premier League. But, though their expectations often enhance performances, they sometimes backfire as well.

Sadly, that's what has been happening with a Southampton star ever since he joined the club.

Well, not a difficult guess to make, it has been the record signing, Kamaldeen Sulemana. Having joined for £22m, Sulemana always had been under pressure to stand up to his price tag.

If that wasn't enough, a goalless Championship campaign under ex-boss Russell Martin had it over. To the extent that his precedence dropped from a starter to a bench player.

Meanwhile, the fans took the winger's reduced game time as his attitude issues.

Recently, as quoted by the Daily Echo, Sulemana himself cleared it all, saying: "People think I've got an attitude problem and that's the reason why I wasn't playing. But I've never, ever disrespected anybody in the club."

Southampton's comeback star adamant to succeed amid first team challenges

Thankfully, boss Ivan Juric's arrival has given the winger's career trajectory a much-needed upward push.

From being tipped to leave in January to being an important lineup player again, it has been a massive turnaround for Sulemana. Well, certainly, it wasn't possible without boss Juric.

Saying on the role of confidence from the manager, Sulemana said: "People don't understand the whole picture. You need to be trusted, you need game time, you need confidence from the coaches and the players."

But now that Sulemana nears his best version, the 22-year-old would want to justify why the club spent a massive fee on him back in 2023.

Now, I know it's quite challenging, but still, it can't be better if he can help the Saints escape relegation. And what a perfect way to return back on track than the upcoming South cost derby against Bournemouth!