With Monaco reportedly interested in Orlando Pirates winger Monnapule Saleng, we've taken a close look at who the French giants currently rely on in attack, and put forward a theory as to why the European side might be tracking the Bafana Bafana international.
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Impressive start in Ligue 1
The Rouges et Blancs have enjoyed a promising start to the 2023/24 league campaign, having won six of their opening Ligue 1 matches since proceedings got underway in August. Coached by Austrian tactician Adi Hutter, who was appointed earlier this year to replace Philippe Clement and has got the team playing an impressive brand of football, Monaco are currently third on the table after 10 matches. The side has scored the joint-most goals (23) in Ligue 1 so far this season and are tied with Paris Saint-Germain. Hutter's team has had more shots on target than any other club since the campaign started (64), while they're also averaging the most shots on target per 90 minutes (6.40), followed by PSG in second (5.60) and Rennes in third (5.40), according to football data website FBREF.
So... why Saleng?
With things seemingly proving to be positive at the moment, why would one of Ligue 1's top-performing teams be looking to the DStv Premiership to strengthen in attack? What would Saleng bring to the Louis II Stadium-based team? Soccer Laduma reports that sources close to the player indicate that Monaco have been paying close attention to the 25-year-old since missing out on Cassius Mailula, who joined Toronto FC in the MLS earlier this year from Mamelodi Sundowns. Should a move be pursued by the Rouges et Blancs, we imagine the Buccaneers would earn a pretty penny from his sale, but the euro to rand exchange rate (1 euro = R19.52 currently) and the fact that Saleng plays his football in South Africa means the French club, founded in 1919, wouldn't necessarily need to break the bank to secure his signature. The South Africa international would be a cheaper alternative to some other promising attacking players around Europe, but perhaps it isn't only the potential price tag that attracts Monaco.
In the team's current attacking contingent, Hutter only has two out-and-out wingers – Krepin Diatta and Gelson Martins – to call upon, and neither of them are left-footed. In fact, out of the 10 players in Monaco's extended attacking group, which includes central players, only 21-year-old Maghnes Akliouche is a natural left-footer. Saleng, who appears to enjoy cutting in from the right side of the field, could potentially offer Monaco something none of their other forward players can.
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In terms of how Hutter prefers to line up, the team was asked to play in a 3-4-1-2 formation in their first eight league matches of the campaign, a system that doesn't typically inspire traditional wing play. In their past two games, meanwhile, the Austrian has gone with a 4-4-2 formation, in which the two central midfielders are asked to sit deep to allow for the team to attack with four players – the two wide men and two strikers. Hutter and the French giants' recruitment team might see Saleng has a flair player, capable of playing on both the right and left flanks, who could give the team something totally unique relative to the current group. While he has netted just twice in 13 games this season, perhaps fresh in Monaco's memory is Saleng's eye-catching performances from last term, in which he contributed to 26 goals in just 30 appearances.
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