Illan Meslier is playing like a goalkeeper who doesn't trust the defenders in front of him and it's that increased pressure which has brought about a number of errors in the goalkeeper's game in recent weeks, according to former Leeds United star Jermaine Beckford.
Meslier silenced some of the critics who have emerged of late with his performance against Leicester City on Tuesday night one of the standouts after a string of impressive saves to keep out the Foxes. It was a notable return to form after difficult back-to-back heavy defeats in which the shot-stopper was criticised for some of his mistakes.
The 23-year-old has been an ever present in the Premier League this season for both Jesse Marsch and now Javia Gracia, with the Spaniard keeping faith in his French goalkeeper despite many calls for Joel Robles to get a first league start in goal for the Whites. That faith from Gracia was rewarded with a fine display.
Read more: Jack Harrison praises Illan Meslier's 'strong mentality' amid Leeds United criticism
Pointing to Meslier's qualities, Beckford was delighted to see the keeper retain his starting berth and put the emphasis not on Meslier, but on those playing in front of him who added to the uncertainty around the number one.
"I am [pleased to see him starting]. He had a little bit of a shaky game (last week), one or two moments where he could have possibly done a little bit better, but it’s down to inexperience," explained Beckford.
"When I say inexperience I don’t mean in terms of the amount of games he’s played, I mean in terms of his age. He’s still very, very young for a Premier League goalkeeper, especially one that’s made 100 appearances.
"He’s naturally going to be learning on the job and it’s coming down to coming off the back of conceding 11 goals, does he fully trust the defenders that are in front of him in this moment? I don’t think he does, which is the reason why he tries to go for it.
"The players in front of him should be stopping the majority of the opportunities that the opposition are getting but that’s not been the case and ultimately it’s resulted in Leeds having a lot of shots conceded. That’s resulted in a lot of goals conceded as well, which is obviously not great."
Leeds United fans will hope Meslier's performance against Leicester will have given the keeper a shot of confidence which can aid the rest of the back four as they prepare for another massive relegation clash at Bournemouth on Sunday.
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