Jenson Seelt smashed the ball so hard that he began to celebrate, but the 23-year-old made an amazing stop to stop him.
Leeds lost the match 1-0, and Sky Sports shared the video of the Frenchman’s stop on Twitter.
Speaking on the EFL feed, Wilson, a BBC Match of the Day commentator, said (12 December, 20:32) “He was off and celebrating and Meslier clawed it away. What an unbelievable save from Meslier. There’s a wonderful stop. Magnificent.”
Worldie
To suggest that Meslier has turned things around would be an understatement given how harshly he was lambasted at the beginning of 2023.
The Frenchman is possibly the best custodian in the Championship this year and has the appearance of a goalie reborn.
The central defenders will be pleased to see that in addition to his improved reflexes and shot stopping, he has also grown more confident with the ball at his feet.
His success has been aided by the excellent understanding that Joe Rodon and Pascal Struijk have developed as the core of the defence, and by Farke’s careful handling of them.
Meslier is currently displaying the kind of play that made him a target for a transfer to some of the greatest teams in Europe not too long ago.
I hope he keeps up this kind of work for the remainder of the season and helps Leeds return to the Premier League.
In a related development:
‘World class’… Kevin Phillips very impressed with one Leeds player tonight despite Sunderland defeat
Leeds presently trail Ipswich Town by ten points after suffering their fourth loss of the year at the Stadium of Light. All of Leeds’ losses have been away from home.
Leeds had a tough evening as none of their attacking players appeared to get into the game, and like to Stoke City, a poor performance was met with consequences.
But from Leeds’ point of view, Meslier’s first-half save to stop Sunderland’s opener from a corner was unquestionably the high point; Phillips said on Sky Sports that it was “world class.”
He said: “I can’t see any goalkeepers making a better save this season. It’s almost behind him. He is not rooted, his is ready for it. That is just a world class save.”
Meslier save incredible, but should’ve done better for the goal
Tonight’s game sums up Meslier’s performance over the past few months precisely because he can always come through with a save like the one he made at Leicester City.
However, Jobe Bellingham’s goal was made possible by his lack of command in the area because it kept him planted to his line and enabled him to return home from a very close distance.
For various reasons, Archie Grey and Pascal Struijk were equally at fault; nonetheless, Meslier ought to have spotted the danger sooner so that he could arrive and claim the ball first.
Leeds are under extreme pressure, even at this early in the season, to avoid dropping any more points considering the performance of the two teams in front of them.
Since Ipswich has already surpassed 50 points, Leeds’ chances of earning automatic promotion on December 23 could be seriously jeopardised by their match at Elland Road.
