In January, Sport Witness covered interest from La Liga in Leeds United’s Illan Meslier.
Not long ago, the goalkeeper was also attracting attention from AC Milan. At that point, there was uncertainty around the future of Mike Maignan.
The France international signed a new deal, putting an end to the idea of Meslier heading to the San Siro.
While things changed for Maignan, they have remained quite the same for the Leeds United player. He hasn’t played even once this season, which is causing concern in France.
FootMercato: Key Points on Leeds United Player
FootMercato state Meslier has ‘completely disappeared’ from the scene at Leeds United. And they’re surprised how all this has happened, given he was very promising when the Whites returned to the Premier League under Marcelo Bielsa.
The outlet believe this is a sign of a complete breakdown in relationship between the two parties, after Meslier was dropped all of a sudden by Daniel Farke in March 2025.
His future is also called into question. The 26-year-old was close to moving to a Turkish club in January. Last summer, Lorient were also in the hunt for him.
He will leave Leeds United for free at the end of the season. FootMercato believe a return to Lorient could be on the cards and it will be a way for Meslier to resurrect his career.
Meslier Exclusion Causes Concern
There has never been a clear reason for the Frenchman’s exclusion. It isn’t to say that Leeds United’s goalkeepers are bad but the lack of clarity is adding to the concern.
Luckily, Meslier is still only 26, a young age for a goalkeeper. If he makes the right career choice in the summer, it can bring him back on track.
He has previously shown enough promise to join a recognised club. It won’t be a surprise if things improve drastically by the end of 2026.
Contract Status, Value and Agents
Ilan Meslier is currently valued at €12m by Transfermarkt, a drop from a height of €22m in 2022. Unfortunately for Leeds United, they won’t be seeing any of that.
The goalkeeper’s contract expires at the end of June, and he can leave the Whites as a free agent. There’s no stated agent for the player, and he’s worked with several in his career.
At the time of the Milan claims, Pini Zahavi was credited with being behind it. Perhaps the lack of a steady agent is why he didn’t get a January move.
