Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier highlighted how standing in a more upright position has massively improved the quality of his shot-stopping in an interview with Leeds Live.
This season marked the start of the Frenchman’s fifth campaign in Yorkshire and his fourth as the number-one goalkeeper at Elland Road. He has made 165 appearances and kept 48 clean sheets for the Whites.
Meslier has kept 17 of those clean sheets in the Championship this season alone. This is one more than West Brom’s Alex Palmer and at least five more than the first-choice goalkeepers at Leeds’ automatic promotion rivals Leicester City, Ipswich Town and Southampton.
Their solid defence has been key to their good form in 2024 which has seen them make up a seemingly impossible points deficit to Leicester so that they now sit top of the Championship, albeit having played one game more than the Foxes.
The new-look back line which Daniel Farke has been using this year comprises Archie Gray and Junior Firpo at full-back and Welsh duo Joe Rodon and Ethan Ampadu at centre-back ahead of Meslier in goal. They have conceded just three goals this calendar year as the Whites have gone undefeated.
The German manager will be hoping that his side’s impressive form of late can continue so that he can achieve his third promotion into the top tier of English football.
When talking about his upturn in form, Meslier said:
“Yes, absolutely. It’s [my footwork] something I’ve changed.
“I think, as a goalkeeper, you can see small details. I’m a little bit higher and it allows me to push higher. I’m happy that I can find some details to allow me to be better and more helpful to the team.”
Farke also weighed in on the conversation about the Whites’ defence, saying:
“The basement for success, 30 years ago and will be the same in 30 years, [is] if you are there with a good defending record you have a great chance to win championships and some silverware you celebrate at the end of the season.
“If you have a look at which teams are in the top positions in the league, it’s always there with quite good defensive records. So, quite often, they are praised for their offensive work and the same for us.
“We have some magic offensive players and we are great in creating chances and scoring goals, but the basement will always be to be rock solid in defending. I’m happy with another clean sheet and, for me, the team with the best defensive record is definitely one team who will definitely promote to the Premier League.”
Writer’s View
Farke’s words are certainly right. Leeds have never had any major problems finding the back of the net, even when they were in the Premier League; it was their notoriously leaky defence which let them down on too many occasions. The German manager will be hoping that a year in the Championship will help to rebuild the confidence of players like Meslier and Junior Firpo so that they can be more solid if they return to the top flight next season.
As for the shotstopper, this season has been a monumental turnaround after the young Frenchman struggled in the Premier League last year and even lost his place towards the end of the season. He still has some work to do, particularly on commanding his area, if he wants to become an elite-level goalkeeper, but his shot-stopping is in as good a place as it has ever been and he has gone a long way to alleviating the ‘guilt‘ he felt after Leeds were relegated last season.
Joining in 2023, Aryan specialises in predictions and National League content for The Real EFL.
