CHRISTIAN Salem says he has set his sights on a midfield role in 2016.

Salem, who moved to half-back this year, said he was keen to keep “growing his game” after playing up forward and down back during his first two seasons at Melbourne. But he added he would love to push into the middle in the near future.

“I want to get myself right so that if I have to play in the midfield I’ll be able to and that’s where my long-term goals are,” he told Dee TV.

“I haven’t really spoken to the coaches about what’s best for the team and if they want me to stay at half-back or come into the midfield. I’m happy either way as long as next year we’re a consistent team and keep adding on wins.”

Reflecting on his injury-disrupted season, Salem said he was now ready to “attack” the pre-season.

“I’ve put in some consistent performances, but I’m not happy with where I’m at. I just want to keep getting better so that’s something I’m going to work on over the off season and I might get a bit more time in the midfield,” he said.

Entering his third year at Melbourne, Salem said he feels “excitement” rather than pressure heading into next season, believing that nothing short of a team effort will drive on-field performance.

“Having a young group, we all have to step up. If we want to accomplish something, it’s not just one person stepping up or one person doing something outrageous; we’re all in it together so it’s going to be a team effort,” he said.

“I think once we have a big pre-season at the end of this year and really buy into where we want to go and the direction of our footy club, we’ll become really consistent and really play for each other.

“Everyone should be excited inside and outside of the club.”