Salem was recruited by the Melbourne Football Club with their first selection and ninth overall in the 2013 national draft.
During the pre-season, he suffered from a thyroid issue which saw him lose six kilograms in the month following the draft.
He played the start of the season in the Victorian Football League (VFL)  for Melbourne's affiliate team, the Casey Scorpions, and after strong form in the VFL, including a thirty-two possession game in the VFL round three match against Frankston at Frankston Park, he made his AFL debut a week later in the thirty-one point loss against Sydney at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in round six.
In his seventh match, Salem was pivotal in Melbourne's comeback victory against Essendon in round thirteen, after marking the ball thirty metres directly in front of goal, he kicked the winning goal with nineteen seconds left in the match, giving Melbourne a one-point lead.
He finished his debut season with twelve matches and senior Herald Sun football writer, Jay Clark, wrote he had the potential to become one of Melbourne's best players.

After playing his debut season in the forward line and a majority of matches as the substitute, Salem changed positions in 2015 and played predominantly on the half-back line.
Playing the first seven matches of the season, he injured his hamstring in the round seven loss to Hawthorn and was initially ruled out for a month, however, after injuring his other hamstring, he ultimately missed two months and returned from injury playing in the VFL in round sixteen, before returning to the senior side in round twenty-one in the twenty-three point loss against Carlton at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
He played the remainder of the season and finished with ten matches overall.

After declaring his intentions to play in the midfield, Salem retained his spot on the half-back line whilst also playing on the wing and prior to the season, he was labelled as one of the players who could have a breakout season by AFL Media journalist, Ben Guthrie.
Entrusted with the kick-ins for the season due to his elite kicking skills, Salem played the first six matches of the season before suffering from a concussion as a result of a head clash during the thirty-nine point loss against St Kilda at Etihad Stadium in round six.
He returned two weeks later for the thirty-two point loss against the Western Bulldogs at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
After being omitted the next week and playing for Casey in the VFL, a recurrence of his thyroid issue would see him miss two months of any form of football, and he returned for Casey when he played against Coburg in round seventeen of the VFL season.
After playing the next three weeks in the VFL, he returned to the senior side for the final match of the year in the 111-point loss against Geelong at Simonds Stadium, which saw him finish with eight matches for the season.
His time in the VFL saw him qualify for the finals, and he played in the winning preliminary final against Williamstown in which he was stretchered off in the second quarter after losing consciousness from a tackle where his head hit the ground heavily.
He subsequently missed the grand final, in which Casey lost to Footscray by thirty-one points at Etihad Stadium.

During the 2017 preseason, senior coach, Simon Goodwin, earmarked a move into the midfield for Salem in the upcoming season, however, he suffered a mishap during preseason training, in which he received his third concussion in 2016 due to a brick in his backpack hitting his head during a preseason camp in December.
Despite the injury, he returned to full fitness in time for the start of the season and played in the opening round match against St Kilda at Etihad Stadium.
The next week in the twenty-two point win against Carlton at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, he recorded a career-high thirty-one disposals, in addition to seven marks, seven rebound 50s, three tackles and a goal, to be named the best player on the field by AFL Media journalist, Ben Collins.
In what was labelled his breakthrough game by Herald Sun reporter, Jay
Salem was recruited by the Melbourne Football Club with their first selection and ninth overall in the 2013 national draft. During the pre-season, he suffered from a thyroid issue which saw him lose six kilograms in the month following the draft. He played the start of the season in the Victorian Football League (VFL)  for Melbourne's affiliate team, the Casey Scorpions, and after strong form in the VFL, including a thirty-two possession game in the VFL round three match against Frankston at Frankston Park, he made his AFL debut a week later in the thirty-one point loss against Sydney at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in round six. In his seventh match, Salem was pivotal in Melbourne's comeback victory against Essendon in round thirteen, after marking the ball thirty metres directly in front of goal, he kicked the winning goal with nineteen seconds left in the match, giving Melbourne a one-point lead. He finished his debut season with twelve matches and senior Herald Sun football writer, Jay Clark, wrote he had the potential to become one of Melbourne's best players.
After playing his debut season in the forward line and a majority of matches as the substitute, Salem changed positions in 2015 and played predominantly on the half-back line. Playing the first seven matches of the season, he injured his hamstring in the round seven loss to Hawthorn and was initially ruled out for a month, however, after injuring his other hamstring, he ultimately missed two months and returned from injury playing in the VFL in round sixteen, before returning to the senior side in round twenty-one in the twenty-three point loss against Carlton at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. He played the remainder of the season and finished with ten matches overall.
After declaring his intentions to play in the midfield, Salem retained his spot on the half-back line whilst also playing on the wing and prior to the season, he was labelled as one of the players who could have a breakout season by AFL Media journalist, Ben Guthrie. Entrusted with the kick-ins for the season due to his elite kicking skills, Salem played the first six matches of the season before suffering from a concussion as a result of a head clash during the thirty-nine point loss against St Kilda at Etihad Stadium in round six. He returned two weeks later for the thirty-two point loss against the Western Bulldogs at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. After being omitted the next week and playing for Casey in the VFL, a recurrence of his thyroid issue would see him miss two months of any form of football, and he returned for Casey when he played against Coburg in round seventeen of the VFL season. After playing the next three weeks in the VFL, he returned to the senior side for the final match of the year in the 111-point loss against Geelong at Simonds Stadium, which saw him finish with eight matches for the season. His time in the VFL saw him qualify for the finals, and he played in the winning preliminary final against Williamstown in which he was stretchered off in the second quarter after losing consciousness from a tackle where his head hit the ground heavily. He subsequently missed the grand final, in which Casey lost to Footscray by thirty-one points at Etihad Stadium.
During the 2017 preseason, senior coach, Simon Goodwin, earmarked a move into the midfield for Salem in the upcoming season, however, he suffered a mishap during preseason training, in which he received his third concussion in 2016 due to a brick in his backpack hitting his head during a preseason camp in December. Despite the injury, he returned to full fitness in time for the start of the season and played in the opening round match against St Kilda at Etihad Stadium. The next week in the twenty-two point win against Carlton at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, he recorded a career-high thirty-one disposals, in addition to seven marks, seven rebound 50s, three tackles and a goal, to be named the best player on the field by AFL Media journalist, Ben Collins. In what was labelled his breakthrough game by Herald Sun reporter, Jay
Christian Salem