# 2023–24 Salford City F.C. season

The 2023–24 season is the 84th season in the history of Salford City and their fifth consecutive season in League Two. The club are participating in League Two, the FA Cup, the EFL Cup, and the EFL Trophy.

## Current squad

    As of 23 March 2024
| No. | Name | Position | Place of birth | Date of birth (Age) | Previous club | Date signed | Fee | Contract end |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||
| 1 | Alex Cairns | GK | Doncaster | (1993-01-04) 4 January 1993 (age 31) | Fleetwood Town | 1 July 2023 | Free | 30 June 2025 |
| 31 | Joel Torrance | GK | Bolton | (2002-04-02) 2 April 2002 (age 22) | Altrincham | 24 July 2021 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| Defenders ||||||||||
| 2 | Ethan Ingram | RB | Gloucester | (2003-04-16) 16 April 2003 (age 21) | West Bromwich Albion | 1 September 2023 | Loan | 31 May 2024 |
| 3 | Declan John | LB | Merthyr Tydfil | (1995-06-30) 30 June 1995 (age 29) | Bolton Wanderers | 1 September 2023 | Loan | 31 May 2024 |
| 5 | Adrian Mariappa | CB | Harrow | (1986-10-03) 3 October 1986 (age 38) | Burton Albion | 23 March 2023 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| 16 | Curtis Tilt | CB | Walsall | (1991-08-04) 4 August 1991 (age 33) | Wigan Athletic | 18 July 2023 | Free | 30 June 2025 |
| 29 | Luke Garbutt | LB | Harrogate | (1993-05-21) 21 May 1993 (age 31) | Blackpool | 1 July 2023 | Free | 30 June 2025 |
| 32 | Liam Shephard | RB | Pentre | (1994-11-22) 22 November 1994 (age 30) | Newport County | 1 July 2021 | Free | 30 June 2025 |
| 42 | Theo Vassell | CB | Stoke-on-Trent | (1997-01-02) 2 January 1997 (age 27) | Wrexham | 12 November 2021 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| 49 | Jacob Lara | CB | | | Academy | 27 July 2023 | Trainee | 30 June 2024 |
| 50 | Tosin Olopade | RB | | | Burnley | 27 July 2023 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||
| 4 | Ossama Ashley | CM | Greenwich | (2000-02-23) 23 February 2000 (age 24) | Colchester United | 30 June 2023 | Undisclosed | 30 June 2025 |
| 6 | Elliot Watt | CM | Preston | (2000-03-11) 11 March 2000 (age 24) | Bradford City | 1 July 2022 | Undisclosed | 30 June 2024 |
| 7 | Ryan Watson | DM | Crewe | (1993-07-07) 7 July 1993 (age 31) | Tranmere Rovers | 14 January 2022 | Undisclosed | 30 June 2025 |
| 8 | Matty Lund | CM | Manchester | (1990-11-21) 21 November 1990 (age 34) | Rochdale | 1 July 2021 | Undisclosed | 30 June 2024 |
| 14 | Stevie Mallan | CM | Glasgow | (1996-03-25) 25 March 1996 (age 28) | Yeni Malatyaspor | 1 July 2022 | Undisclosed | 30 June 2024 |
| 19 | Jez Davies | CM | London | (2004-07-10) 10 July 2004 (age 20) | Burnley | 24 January 2024 | Free | 30 June 2025 |
| 20 | Daniel Chesters | RM | Hitchin | (2002-04-04) 4 April 2002 (age 22) | West Ham United | 1 February 2024 | Loan | 31 May 2024 |
| 30 | Kelly N'Mai | RM | | (2004-05-01) 1 May 2004 (age 20) | Academy | 1 July 2021 | Trainee | 30 June 2024 |
| 47 | Liam Humbles | CM | | (2003-12-05) 5 December 2003 (age 21) | Academy | 1 July 2023 | Trainee | 30 June 2024 |
| 52 | Jordan Fankwe | CM | | (2003-01-09) 9 January 2003 (age 21) | Watford | 27 July 2023 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| 56 | Kyrell Malcom | CM | | | Academy | 24 November 2023 | Trainee | 30 June 2024 |
| — | Alfie Henderson | CM | | | Academy | 1 January 2023 | Trainee | 30 June 2024 |
| Forwards ||||||||||
| 9 | Callum Hendry | CF | Lytham St Annes | (1997-12-08) 8 December 1997 (age 27) | St Johnstone | 1 July 2022 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| 11 | Connor McLennan | RW | Peterhead | (1999-10-05) 5 October 1999 (age 25) | Aberdeen | 25 July 2023 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| 17 | Matt Smith | CF | Birmingham | (1989-06-07) 7 June 1989 (age 35) | Millwall | 19 January 2022 | Undisclosed | 30 June 2024 |
| 18 | Conor McAleny | CF | Huyton | (1992-08-12) 12 August 1992 (age 32) | Oldham Athletic | 1 July 2021 | Free | 30 June 2025 |
| 39 | Callum Morton | CF | Torquay | (2000-01-19) 19 January 2000 (age 24) | Fleetwood Town | 13 January 2023 | Undisclosed | 30 June 2025 |
| 45 | Djavan Pedro | CF | | (2003-12-05) 5 December 2003 (age 21) | Academy | 1 July 2022 | Trainee | 30 June 2024 |
| 48 | Ben Collins | CM | | | Academy | 23 September 2023 | Trainee | 30 June 2024q |
| 51 | Sandro Da Costa | CF | Galway | | FC United of Manchester | 31 July 2023 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| 54 | Junior Luamba | CF | | (2003-04-27) 27 April 2003 (age 21) | Oldham Athletic | 29 September 2023 | Free | 30 June 2026 |
| Out on Loan ||||||||||
| 23 | Kevin Berkoe | LB | | (2001-07-05) 5 July 2001 (age 23) | Oxford United | 29 September 2020 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| 36 | Marcus Dackers | CF | | (2003-01-09) 9 January 2003 (age 21) | Brighton & Hove Albion | 1 July 2021 | Free | 30 June 2024 |
| 53 | Jacob Hamman | CM | | | Academy | 13 November 2023 | Trainee | 30 June 2024 |

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Pos | Player | Transferred from | Fee |
| 30 June 2023 | CM | Ossama Ashley | Colchester United | Undisclosed |
| 1 July 2023 | GK | Alex Cairns | Fleetwood Town | Free Transfer |
| 1 July 2023 | LB | Luke Garbutt | Blackpool | Free Transfer |
| 18 July 2023 | CB | Curtis Tilt | Wigan Athletic | Free Transfer |
| 25 July 2023 | RW | Connor McLennan | Aberdeen | Free Transfer |
| 27 July 2023 | RW | Sandro Da Costa † | FC United of Manchester | Free Transfer |
| 27 July 2023 | CM | Jordan Fankwe † | Watford | Free Transfer |
| 27 July 2023 | RB | Tosin Olopade † | Burnley | Free Transfer |
| 29 September 2023 | CF | Junior Luamba † | Oldham Athletic | Free Transfer |
| 24 January 2024 | CM | Jez Davies | Burnley | Free Transfer |
† Initially signed for the 'B team

### Out

| Date | Pos | Player | Transferred to | Fee |
| 30 June 2023 | CB | Ashley Eastham | Free agent | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | DM | Jason Lowe | Port Vale | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | CM | Shane McLoughlin | Newport County | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | RB | James Melhado | Truro City | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | CB | Richard Nartey | Free agent | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | CB | Josh O'Brien | Hamilton Academical | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | CF | Colin Oppong | Glenavon | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | CM | Adam Porter | Truro City | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | CM | Matt Sargent | Radcliffe | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | AM | Elliot Simões | Al-Qaisumah | Released |
| 30 June 2023 | LB | Ibou Touray | Stockport County | End of Contract |
| 8 August 2023 | CB | Ryan Leak | Ross County | Undisclosed |
| 9 January 2023 | AM | Odin Bailey | Stockport County | Undisclosed |
| 1 February 2024 | RB | Luke Bolton | Wrexham | Undisclosed |

### Loaned in

| Date | Pos | Player | Loaned from | Until |
| 25 July 2023 | GK | Joe Wright | Millwall | 8 January 2024 |
| 1 September 2023 | RB | Ethan Ingram | West Bromwich Albion | End of Season |
| 1 September 2023 | LB | Declan John | Bolton Wanderers | End of Season |
| 1 February 2024 | RM | Daniel Chesters | West Ham United | End of Season |
* ↑ On 5 January, John's loan from Bolton was extended until the end of season.

### Loaned out

| Date | Pos | Player | Loaned to | Until |
| 1 September 2023 | AM | Odin Bailey | Stockport County | 1 January 2024 |
| 1 September 2023 | CF | Callum Morton | Forest Green Rovers | End of Season |
| 24 November 2023 | CF | Marcus Dackers | Altrincham | 2 January 2024 |
| 12 January 2024 | CF | Marcus Dackers | Southend United | End of Season |
| 2 February 2024 | CM | Jacob Hamman | Nantwich Town | End of Season |
| 9 February 2024 | CM | Ben Collins | Clitheroe | 9 March 2024 |
| 8 March 2024 | LB | Kevin Berkoe | Woking | End of Season |

## Pre-season and friendlies

On 26 May, the club announced their pre-season schedule, with friendlies against West Bromwich Albion, Bolton Wanderers, Radcliffe and AFC Fylde. A training camp in Alicante along with a friendly against Derby County was also confirmed. On July 10, a sixth pre-season friendly was confirmed, against Plymouth Argyle.
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

## Competitions
### Overall record

| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Final position | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record |
| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Final position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % |
| League Two | 5 August | | Matchday 1 | | 39 | 11 | 11 | 17 | 58 | 72 | −14 | 028.21 |
| FA Cup | | | Third round | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | !— |
| EFL Cup | 8 August | 26 September | First round | Third round | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 000.00 |
| EFL Trophy | 5 September | 31 October | Group stage | Group Stage | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | −3 | 000.00 |
| Total | Total | Total | Total | Total | 43 | 11 | 13 | 19 | 61 | 82 | −21 | 025.58 |
Last updated: 17 March 2024 Source: Soccerway

### League Two
#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 17 | Accrington Stanley | 46 | 16 | 9 | 21 | 63 | 71 | −8 | 57 | |
| 18 | Newport County | 46 | 16 | 7 | 23 | 62 | 76 | −14 | 55 | |
| 19 | Swindon Town | 46 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 77 | 83 | −6 | 54 | |
| 20 | Salford City | 46 | 13 | 12 | 21 | 66 | 82 | −16 | 51 | |
| 21 | Grimsby Town | 46 | 11 | 16 | 19 | 57 | 74 | −17 | 49 | |
| 22 | Colchester United | 46 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 59 | 80 | −21 | 45 | |
| 23 | Sutton United (R) | 46 | 9 | 15 | 22 | 59 | 84 | −25 | 42 | Relegated to National League |

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: 27 April 2024. Source: Soccerway

#### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 21$^1$ | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 29$^2$ | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 |
| Ground | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H |
| Result | W | D | L | W | L | L | L | L | L | W | W | W | L | D | W | D | L | L | L | D | D | L | L | L | L | D | W | D | W | W | D | D | W | L | D | L | L | D | W | W | L | L | L | L | W | D |
| Position | 4 | 5 | 12 | 5 | 10 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 21 | 20 | 17 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
* $^1$ Matchday 21 (vs Bradford City) was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch.
* $^2$ Matchday 29 (vs Colchester United) was postponed due to a frozen pitch.

#### Matches

On 22 June, the EFL League Two fixtures were released.
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

### FA Cup

Salford were drawn away to Peterborough United in the first round.
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

### EFL Cup

Salford were drawn away to Preston North End in the first round and then at home to Leeds United in the second round and Burnley in the third round.
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

### EFL Trophy

In the group stage, Salford were drawn alongside Bolton Wanderers, Stockport County and Manchester United U21.
| Pos | Div | Teamvte | Pld | W | PW | PL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | L1 | Bolton Wanderers | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 | +12 | 9 | Advance to Round 2 |
| 2 | L2 | Stockport County | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 | Advance to Round 2 |
| 3 | L2 | Salford City | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 9 | −4 | 3 | |
| 4 | ACA | Manchester United U21 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 13 | −8 | 2 | |
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures