Since Leeds United gave Illan Meslier a chance, the young French goalkeeper has never looked back and made the number one spot his own.
He’s done well, even if the Elland Road side are currently in a relegation battle under newly appointed Javi Gracia, and the talent is there for all to appreciate, with some hoping to see him wearing a France shirt soon, such as Eurosport.
He has done so for the U21s, of course, but with a reshuffle in the hierarchy following the retirements of Hugo Lloris and Steve Mandanda, there is a chance that it could happen in the near future, especially with players such as Alphonse Aréola hardly playing in their clubs.
Whether the Leeds star gets a call-up is entirely up to Didier Deschamps, who will be aware of his performances, but Eurosport do explain that he needs to do one thing to ensure he gets a real shot at it.
It won’t please the Elland Road faithful, but they write that a ‘transfer to a big club’ is needed for the 23-year-old, and the move is seen as a ‘necessary step’ to get him in the France squad.
For example, Mike Maignan is the starter at AC Milan, while Hugo Lloris was a stalwart at Lyon and Tottenham for many years.
That’s no disrespect to Leeds, but it’s a reality that unless Meslier turns into the best goalkeeper in the Premier League by a country mile, it’s always going to be hard for him to show that he’s ready for big games in the France squad when he could be playing European football on top of what he already does with the Whites.
