Highlights
- Leeds United goalkeeper Karl Darlow is determined to make an impact this season and is not content with sitting on the bench.
- Illan Meslier’s performance in Leeds’ opening game was unimpressive, and his position as the starting goalkeeper could be threatened by Darlow.
- Darlow, who recently signed from Newcastle, has a proven track record in the Championship and could be a long-term option for Leeds. Meslier should be concerned.
Leeds United goalkeeper Karl Darlow hasn’t made the move from Champions League playing Newcastle United to just “sit on the bench” this season, according to The Athletic’s Phil Hay.
Will Karl Darlow replace Illan Meslier at Leeds United this summer?
After a few months of bad news and general misery for Leeds and their supporters, the team managed to inject a bit of life and hope back into the club after fighting back from 2-0 down to earn a hard-fought draw against Cardiff City on the opening weekend of the Championship season.
That said, the fact that the side went 2-0 down to a club that just managed to avoid relegation to the third tier by the skin of their teeth last season is still a significant concern, and one of the players that did little to help their case was goalkeeper Illan Meslier.
While he wasn’t directly at fault for any of the goals, he was still unimpressive and could have done better with the first goal, with Leeds Live reporter Beren Cross giving him just a five out of ten for his performance.
The Frenchman will need to do better than that over the next few games, as with the £400,000 signing of Darlow from Newcastle last month, his spot is likely to be under serious threat from the former Nottingham Forest man, per Phil Hay.
He gave his opinion on The Square Ball YouTube channel, saying:
“Darlow I think will come into the frame before long I don’t really don’t think Farke has signed him to sit on the bench.”
How old is Karl Darlow?
Born October 8 1990, the former Newcastle keeper is 32-years-old, which while just beyond the peak years for a goalkeeper – according to The Athletic – is a good age for a team’s number one and should he perform well for the Whites, he could be there for several years to come.
Worryingly for Meslier, the Englishman has already demonstrated his ability to perform to a high level in the second tier on multiple occasions in his career, most recently with Hull City.
In his 12 appearances for the Tigers last season, he maintained a passing accuracy of 76.3%, won one Man-of-the-Match award and averaged a respectable match rating of 6.87, per WhoScored.
In fact, in his four spells in the Championship, he has never dipped below an average rating of 6.72, proving that he is more than equipped to step between the sticks should even the faintest opportunity present itself.
While he might’ve not quite had the quality to firmly establish himself as the Magpies’ number one following their takeover and rise up the league, he certainly had his moments in the famous black and white, with club legend Alan Shearer lauding him for a particular performance against defending champions Liverpool in 2020, when he said:
“He should be very, very proud of his performance. When required, he came up with the goods. He was big and strong. He just kept them out. There was no way they were going to get past him this evening.
“The defenders in front of him had to work extremely hard, but when they got past the defenders he was just exceptional, superb.”
Watching the battle for Leeds’ number-one shirt this season will undoubtedly be enjoyable, but if Hay is correct, the writing may be on the wall for Meslier.
