Match of the Day pundit Alan Shearer believes Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier should have cleared the ball away first time for Arsenal’s first goal on Sunday. Meslier was at fault as he attempted to control Luke Ayling’s back pass before clearing it, however his first touch was loose which allowed Eddie Nketiah to tackle the ball into an empty net.
That error proved costly for Leeds as they suffered a 2-1 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, which has seen them move into the bottom three due to Everton’s win at Leicester City. Meslier’s mistake kick-started a torrid opening half an hour for the Whites at the Emirates with Nketiah doubling his tally for the afternoon just five minutes later due to some poor marking at the back.
Ayling then let his frustrations get the better of him as he was sent off for a needless two-footed lunge in the corner on Gabriel Martinelli, that will now see him miss the remainder of the season. Despite spending over an hour with 10 men, Leeds stuck in the game and forced some late pressure of their own after Diego Llorente’s goal.
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But ultimately it wasn’t enough to stop Leeds sliding into 18th place and Shearer has criticised the mistakes that were made early on given the pressure situation they find themselves in.
Speaking on Match of the Day 2, he said: “There’s no harm [in hoofing it]. Especially in the early part of the game when you know the situation you’re in. Don’t put yourself under any pressure, don’t make any stupid mistakes for the first 10-15 minutes and invite pressure onto you.”
