Southampton winger should join Blackburn Rovers to continue development

With the January transfer window fast approaching, most clubs will be looking to bolster their squads and improve their attacking options, and one of those teams that should be on the hunt already should be John Eustace’s Blackburn Rovers.

Currently ninth place in the Championship table and struggling for depth in wide areas, one particular Premier League winger could make a remarkable difference at Ewood Park, if they were to pursue his services come the start of 2025 – that man is Ghanaian winger Kamaldeen Sulemana.

Out of favour under Russell Martin, the winger arrived at Southampton from Rennes in February 2023, but has been unable to truly lock down a starting role at St Mary’s Stadium in just over two seasons with the club.

Still only 22 years of age, there is ample time for Sulemana to demonstrate the promise he once showed in France, and a move to Lancashire could be exactly what is needed instead of going abroad or being outright sold.

Kamaldeen Sulemana has had his troubles at Southampton

Since his £18 million move to Southampton from Rennes, left-wing prodigy Sulemana has really struggled to make a name for himself in English football.

47 appearances and only 7 goal contributions is not the return Saints fans would have hoped for when the lightning-quick winger moved to St Mary’s from Ligue 1 – especially for the fee that was paid.

Sulemana spent the entire 2023-24 season on the south coast in the Championship, but he failed to register a goal from his 28 outings, and also barely started in the final few months of the campaign.

Following on from that disappointment, having registered no starts and only two league appearances in the Premier League this season, a loan move could be exactly what is needed to spark the Ghanaian forward back into life.

However, with playing time under Russell Martin appearing increasingly unlikely, a move away may be the best course of action to aid the player’s progression, with Blackburn Rovers looking like a decent landing spot for any out of favour wide player.

Blackburn Rovers could do with a player like Kamaldeen Sulemana if he’s available

Blackburn are rather thin on the ground when it comes to out-and-out wingers currently present at the club.

A number of players have started games out wide this season for Eustace, including Andreas Weimann, Ryan Hedges, Todd Cantwell and Lewis Baker, and you could argue that three of the four – excluding Hedges – are more effective in the middle of the pitch.

Meanwhile, Arnor Sigurdsson and regular number 10 Tyrhys Dolan could also play out wide, but the former has also only played a total of 57 minutes this season, with illness and injuries restricting the Iceland international’s game-time.

19-year-old wonderkid Amario Cozier-Duberry had also arrived on loan from Brighton, looking to seal some of his own game time on the wing, but his minutes have been limited due to injury struggles.

The youngster is forecasted to return at the start of December after suffering an ankle injury, but whether he will be able to stay fit is another question that may be plaguing Eustace.

Regarding Hedges, the winger certainly has security in Eustace’s starting lineup at present, but has often lacked quality this season.

Hedges falls into the bottom percentile in the Championship for most statistics associated with high-quality wing play. He registers a very low cross accuracy and expected assists per 90 minutes, which means that it is dubious as to whether Hedges is the best player to be starting each week for John Eustace’s side.

Sulemana could certainly improve upon Hedges’ current form, and possesses the capabilities necessary to assume a starting spot at Ewood Park – as he should do, given the price-tag he moved to England for.

Kamaldeen Sulemana could be an upgrade to Ryan Hedges at Blackburn Rovers

Comparatively, Sulemana’s statistics across Southampton’s last season in the Championship eclipse the numbers put up by Hedges.

The Ghanaian’s expected assists per 90 minutes was more than double the Rovers man’s current output, almost identical to the gap in the pair’s dribble success rates.

While he has struggled to make a name for himself with Southampton, it is clear that Sulemana possesses the qualities to thrive in the Championship.

He is a young and electric forward who gives defenders nightmares with his dribbling, and a loan move would allow the player to continue his development in the form of regular game-time, and so Blackburn could be the perfect club to facilitate his growth.