Exclusive: Yousef Salech exit fear at Cardiff City mooted as David Prutton makes claim | OneFootball

Yousef Salech only joined the Bluebirds in January, but David Prutton believes they may face a battle to keep him if they go down.

The recent performances of Cardiff City striker Yousef Salech have been a rare bright spark in what has been a dismal season for the club.

Omer Riza’s side currently find themselves sitting inside the Championship’s drop zone with just four league games remaining, and they desperately need to find some form if they are to preserve their second tier status for another year.

Despite their collective struggles, Salech’s individual form has been a source of great promise for the Bluebirds.

The frontman only joined as recently as the January transfer window, but has already found the net five times in just 10 starts for the South Wales outfit.

David Prutton believes Cardiff could lose Salech if they go down

After a seven-game unbeaten run across the New Year period, Cardiff threatened to pull away from the drop zone and book their place in the Championship for next season with relative ease.

However, that simply hasn’t materialised. Riza’s men have found wins hard to come by in recent weeks, having claimed three points in just two of their last 13 league games.

They have drawn five of those games, including a run of three draws in their last four, but with improvement around them from the likes of Derby County, it seems highly unlikely that the Bluebirds will be able to draw their way to safety.

With a trip to Sheffield United still to come, plus the visit of play-off hopefuls West Brom, Cardiff don’t have the easiest of run-ins.

Despite their situation growing bleaker by the game, Salech’s promising start at the club has at least provided one source of positivity of late.

The striker has come in and adapted seamlessly to English football and, with five league goals already, he is the club’s second-highest scorer this season, despite having made just 16 appearances.

However, while the mood is largely positive around the 23-year-old, there will also be fears that he could depart the club if they were to drop into League One for next season.

With that in mind, we asked EFL pundit David Prutton whether he feels Cardiff could face a battle to keep the young frontman, if they were to slip into the third tier.

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Prutton said: “It’s game on, isn’t it, for players moving on, if Cardiff are to go down. There will be books to be balanced and finances to be absolutely adhered to.

“So, I think there is a potential chance of that (Salech leaving). He’s had a promising start to life at Cardiff in spite of what’s been a very trying period of time for the football club in the Championship.

“Key players will be attractions to teams that can potentially take advantage of a club dropping out of the division.

“So yes, he’s had a promising start, but he still needs a bit of work though.”

Salech’s performances could attract interest

Despite the fact he has only been in England for a matter of months, it’s plausible that Salech’s performances could already be attracting interest from other teams, especially if Cardiff end up playing League One football next season.

The frontman had already struck 11 league goals for Swedish Allsvenskan outfit IK Sirius during their most recent season (February 2024-January 2025) and has since added another five since his reported £3.3m move to the Championship.

As well as his prowess in front of goal, he has brought a vital physical presence to the Bluebirds, something which can be particularly useful to help tip the fine margins in your favour in the midst of a relegation battle.

Compared to other strikers in the Championship, the Dane ranks among the top five percent in terms of percentage of aerial duels won and his link-up play could be crucial to any hopes Cardiff have of surviving the drop.

The Bluebirds may be able to protect themselves to some degree due to the fact that they have only just signed Salech, but if Riza’s men do fall into League One, it would be no surprise to see clubs offering the young striker the opportunity to jump straight back to the Championship.