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Illan Meslier

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Illan Stéphane Meslier (/ˌmɛlˈjeɪ/; French pronunciation: [məlje]) (born 2 March 2000) is a French professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for EFL Championship club Leeds United.

Illan Meslier
Meslier warming up for Lorient in 2019
Personal information
Full name Illan Stéphane Meslier[1]
Date of birth (2000-03-02) 2 March 2000 (age 24)
Place of birth Lorient, France
Height 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)[2]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Leeds United
Number 1
Youth career
2006–2009 Merlevenez
2009–2019 Lorient
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2018 Lorient II 17 (0)
2018–2019 Lorient 28 (0)
2019–2020 → Leeds United (loan) 10 (0)
2020– Leeds United 166 (0)
International career‡
2018 France U18 3 (0)
2018 France U19 5 (0)
2019 France U20 4 (0)
2021–2023 France U21 13 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 07 October 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 2 July 2023 (UTC)

Early life

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Illan Stéphane Meslier[1] was born on 2 March 2000[3] in Lorient, Brittany.[4]

Club career

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Lorient

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Meslier playing for Lorient in 2019

Meslier began playing football with his local club Merlevenez at the age of 6, and after a successful match against FC Lorient joined their academy.[5] On 1 February 2018, he signed his first professional contract with Lorient.[6] In July 2018, Lorient rejected a €10 million bid from Ligue 1 side AS Monaco for Meslier.[7][8] He also received interest from English Premier League side Chelsea.[9][8]

He stayed at Lorient, and shortly made his professional debut under then manager Mickaël Landreau for Lorient in a 1–0 Coupe de la Ligue win over Valenciennes FC on 14 August 2018.[10] He kept a clean sheet consecutively in his first five games as a professional, conceding his first ever goal in his 6th game against Paris FC.[11] He saved an injury time penalty from Clermont player Manuel Perez in Lorient's 1–0 win against Clermont.[12] He solidified his place as the club's number 1 keeper during the 2018–19 season, playing 30 times in all competitions, keeping 11 clean sheets. With his form helping Lorient finish in 6th in 2018–19 Ligue 2 but narrowly missing out on the playoffs due to goal difference compared with RC Lens. [13]

Leeds United

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2019–20 season

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On 8 August 2019, Meslier was signed on a season-long loan by English Championship team Leeds United, with Leeds also having the option to buy Meslier on a permanent deal.[14][15] He started the season as second choice goalkeeper behind Kiko Casilla and competing with Kamil Miazek for a place on the bench, Meslier gained a reputation as a penalty saving expert after saving three separate penalties for Leeds United under-23's by December.[16]

On 4 January 2020, head coach Marcelo Bielsa announced that Meslier would make his debut on 6 January in Leeds' FA Cup tie against Premier League side Arsenal.[17] With Meslier putting in an impressive performance against the Premier League side in a 1–0 defeat on his debut, he was praised for his distribution and his saves during the match.[18] On 29 February 2020, he made his league debut for Leeds in a 4–0 victory away at Hull City.[19]

Meslier finished the season as first choice at Leeds after an eight-game suspension to fellow goalkeeper Kiko Casilla,[20] with Meslier keeping seven clean sheets in his 10 league games to help Leeds become Champions and win promotion to the Premier League.[21][22]

2020–21 season

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On 23 July 2020, Meslier joined Leeds permanently following their promotion to the English Premier League, for a reported £5m transfer fee,[23] signing a three-year contract.[24] Meslier made his 2020–21 Premier League debut in the first match of the season against Liverpool on 12 September 2020, starting in the 3–4 defeat at Anfield to the reigning champions.[25][26] On 28 September, Meslier was named man of the match in the Yorkshire derby 1–0 win over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane, after making a string of fine saves including a point blank reflex save at 0–0.[27]

On 23 February 2021, Meslier became the first goalkeeper under the age of 21 to record 11 clean sheets in a single Premier League season,[28] eventually finishing the season with 11.[29]

2021–22 season

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On 13 August 2021, Meslier signed a new deal which extended his contract until 2026.[30]

2022–23 season

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Meslier's performance against Liverpool on 29 October 2022, in which he made nine saves to give his side a 2–1 away win and take them out of the relegation zone, saw him awarded the Premier League Man of the Match award.[31][32] He made his 100th appearance for Leeds at Elland Road on 4 January 2023, in a 2–2 draw with West Ham United.[33]

Meslier conceded 22 goals in seven games during the month of April 2023, during which time the team took just four points from a possible 21 and resulted in the dismissal of Head Coach Javi Gracia. With the arrival of Sam Allardyce in May 2023 — Leeds’ fourth manager of the 2022-23 season — Meslier saw no further action in the first team, being replaced by Joel Robles for the final four games of the season, from which the team gained a single point, consigning them to the Championship for the 2023-24 season.

2023–24 season

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Meslier received a red card on 26 December 2023 after punching Milutin Osmajić in a match against Preston North End.[34]

International career

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Meslier has been capped at international level by France, all the way up to France U21s. He was also part of the France U20 squad for the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup playing as the first choice goalkeeper in May 2019.[35]

In November 2019, Meslier was called up the France U21 squad and was named as an unused substitute in a 3–1 defeat against Switzerland U21's on 19 November 2019.[36] He was called up again to the France U21 squad in August 2020 for fixtures against Georgia U21 and Azerbaijan U21.[37] He made his debut for the under-21 team playing in the quarter final against the Netherlands on 31 May 2021.[38]

Style of play

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Due to his appearance and physical stature, Meslier's goalkeeping style has been compared to that of Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.[39][40]

Career statistics

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As of match played 23 August 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Lorient II 2017–18[41] Championnat National 2 16 0 — — — 16 0
2018–19[41] Championnat National 2 1 0 — — — 1 0
Total 17 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 17 0
Lorient 2018–19[41] Ligue 2 28 0 0 0 2 0 — 30 0
Leeds United (loan) 2019–20[42] Championship 10 0 1 0 0 0 — 11 0
Leeds United 2020–21[43] Premier League 35 0 0 0 0 0 — 35 0
2021–22[44] Premier League 38 0 1 0 3 0 — 42 0
2022–23[45] Premier League 34 0 3 0 1 0 — 38 0
2023–24[46] Championship 44 0 3 0 0 0 3[c] 0 50 0
2024–25[47] Championship 15 0 0 0 0 0 — 15 0
Total 204 0 8 0 6 0 3 0 221 0
Career total 221 0 8 0 6 0 3 0 238 0
  1. ^ Includes FA Cup
  2. ^ Includes Coupe de la Ligue, EFL Cup
  3. ^ Appearances in Championship play-offs

Honours

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Leeds United

Individual

References

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  1. ^ a b "FIFA U-20 World Cup Poland 2019: List of Players: France" (PDF). FIFA. 13 June 2019. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 February 2020.
  2. ^ "Illan Meslier: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
  3. ^ "Illan Meslier: Overview". ESPN. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  4. ^ "Illan Meslier". L'Équipe (in French). Paris. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  5. ^ "Ilan Meslier, gardien malgré lui - FC Lorient". 5 December 2016.
  6. ^ "Illan Meslier signe son premier contrat professionnel - FC Lorient". 1 February 2018.
  7. ^ "Who is FC Lorient goalkeeper Illan Meslier? Leeds United's loanee profiled". YEP. 8 August 2019.
  8. ^ a b "Mercato. FC Lorient: Illan Meslier to Monaco". Ouest France. 9 July 2018.
  9. ^ "FC Lorient. Chelsea also looks for Meslier". Ouest France. 24 July 2018.
  10. ^ "Valenciennes vs. Lorient - 14 August 2018 - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com.
  11. ^ "Illan Meslier, the quiet strength of a number one caretaker". Be Soccer.
  12. ^ "Football. Metz, Brest and Lorient garner". 24 Matins. 23 February 2024.
  13. ^ "French teenage goalkeeper Illan Meslier close to Leeds United arrival". YEP.
  14. ^ "Illan Meslier signs on loan". www.leedsunited.com. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  15. ^ "ILLAN MESLIER ON LOAN TO LEEDS". Lorient Official Site (in French). 8 August 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  16. ^ "Leeds United fans react as Illan Meslier saves another penalty". The Boot Room. 20 December 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  17. ^ "Marcelo Bielsa reveals four Leeds United changes for Arsenal FA Cup clash and issues Whites injury update". Yorkshire Evening Post. 4 January 2020. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  18. ^ "Arsenal performance shows how well Leeds' approach to the loan market is working – despite Nketiah frustration". The Athletic.
  19. ^ "Hull City 0-4 Leeds United: Ayling, Hernandez & Roberts give Whites victory". BBC Sport. 29 February 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  20. ^ "Leeds goalkeeper gets eight-match ban for racism". BBC Sport. 28 February 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  21. ^ "LEEDS UNITED COMPLETE ILLAN MESLIER TRANSFER". Leeds United. 23 July 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  22. ^ "Championship: Leeds United promoted to Premier League after 16-year absence". BBC Sport. 17 July 2020.
  23. ^ Pearson, Steve (23 July 2020). "Fee revealed as Leeds complete second summer transfer". TEAMtalk.
  24. ^ "Illan Meslier: Leeds United sign Lorient keeper after loan spell". BBC Sport. 23 July 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  25. ^ "Leeds United made a dramatic return to the Premier League after a 16-year absence as they produced a magnificent display only to lose to a late penalty in a thriller against champions Liverpool at Anfield". BBC. 12 September 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  26. ^ "Liverpool 4 Leeds 3". BBC Sport. 12 September 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  27. ^ "'Who is this guy?' Leeds' new star Meslier". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  28. ^ "Premier League. L'ancien gardien du FC Lorient Illan Meslier bat un record vieux de 14 ans" (in French). Ouest-France. 26 February 2021. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
  29. ^ "Illan Meslier Statistics | Premier League". www.premierleague.com.
  30. ^ "Illan Meslier signs Leeds United contract until 2026". BBC Sport. 13 August 2021.
  31. ^ Rose, Gary (29 October 2022). "Liverpool 1–2 Leeds United". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  32. ^ "Premier League Man of the Match 2022-23 Matchweek 14". www.PremierLeague.com. 29 October 2022. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  33. ^ "Leeds 2-2 West Ham: Rodrigo denies West Ham with Leeds leveller". BBC Sport. 4 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  34. ^ "x". Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  35. ^ "Mali 2 France 0". UEFA. Archived from the original on 17 May 2019.
  36. ^ "Switzerland 3-1 France". Sky Sports.
  37. ^ "ILLAN MESLIER NAMED IN FRANCE U21S SQUAD". Leeds United. 27 August 2020.
  38. ^ "Netherlands 2 France 1". UEFA.
  39. ^ "Casilla starred again but soon Leeds may be without him. If the time comes, Meslier will be ready". The Athletic.
  40. ^ "EXCLUSIVE ILLAN MESLIER: "WITHOUT A BIG GUARD, YOU CAN'T GO FAR". Onze Mondial. 3 July 2019.
  41. ^ a b c Illan Meslier at Soccerway. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  42. ^ "Games played by Illan Meslier in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  43. ^ "Games played by Illan Meslier in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  44. ^ "Games played by Illan Meslier in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  45. ^ "Games played by Illan Meslier in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
  46. ^ "Games played by Illan Meslier in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
  47. ^ "Games played by Illan Meslier in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
  48. ^ "Leeds United are champions!". Leeds United F.C. 18 July 2020. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  49. ^ "LEEDS UNITED PLAYER OF THE YEAR 2021 WINNERS". Leeds United F.C. 23 May 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  50. ^ "Illan Meslier and Alex Palmer share the Sky Bet Championship Golden Glove award". EFL. 10 May 2024. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  51. ^ "PFA Championship Team of the Year". PFA. 20 August 2024.
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