Marcelo Bielsa hails Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier after Arsenal defeat

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Marcelo Bielsa hailed Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier after his performance against Arsenal on Monday night.

The Whites did fall to a 1-0 defeat at the Emirates Stadium in the third round of the FA Cup, as Reiss Nelson scored a second-half winner for the Premier League outfit.

But Championship leaders Leeds gave a brilliant account of themselves, especially in the first-half when they dominated the ball and created a number of great goalscoring chances.

The Yorkshire giants can now focused on their promotion bid in the league, but the cup display proved they are a quality outfit and that there is real depth in the squad at Elland Road too.

Leeds manager Bielsa was left delighted by Meslier’s performance in goal against Arsenal.

“It was a great performance from him (Meslier),” Bielsa said, as quoted by Leeds Live.

“The way he played is very positive for us looking at the future because when the team controlled the match he managed the ball well and when the team was controlled by the opponent he offered good, top level answers.”

TBR’s View:

Meslier was superb in the cup for Leeds in what was his first senior appearance for the club since joining on loan from Lorient in the summer.

The French shot-stopper made a couple of eye-catching saves in the second-half and couldn’t do much about Nelson’s close-range finish.

He looked the part with the ball at his feet and the incredible distribution with a number of inch-perfect passes really stood out from his display.

The 19-year-old has proven he’s a brilliant understudy to Kiko Csailla in goal and Leeds should look into signing him permanently, as the youngster may have a great future.