‘Rock bottom’: Ben Foster says it’s high-time Leeds United drop £5m star

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Reflecting on Leeds United’s 4-1 defeat to Bournemouth, Ben Foster has said that Illan Meslier should be taken out of the firing line.

The £5 million (Yorkshire Evening Post) man is having a challenging time in goal for the Whites, as was evident against the Cherries as he flapped at a cross for Jefferson Lerma’s strike before letting the ball go underneath him for Antoine Semenyo’s tame effort as well.

Illan Meslier is having a hellish season for Leeds United so far and Ben Foster has suggested the club to keep him out of the spotlight for now.

Ben Foster recommends Leeds to drop Illan Meslier

This does not take away from how talented the Frenchman is but it cannot be disputed that he has been horrific this campaign.

With just four games left in the Premier League for Meslier’s side to attain survival, the club need a stabler head to keep them in the race right until the very end.

Ben Foster, as a goalkeeper himself empathised with Illan Meslier but ultimately suggested Leeds to drop him for a while.

“Poor Illan Meslier. I’m feeling for him. I think you have to take him out of the firing line now. Listen, Illan Meslier is a good goalie. He’s proven it over the last couple of years.”, he said on The Football Fill-In.

“But this just goes to show that when a goalkeeper’s confidence is rock bottom and I mean, rock bottom, shot to pieces, it doesn’t matter how good of a goalie you are. It genuinely does not matter how good a goalie you are if you cannot take that proper mentality into a game, there’s no point.”

Ben Foster related to what Illan Meslier is undergoing at Leeds by recounting his personal experiences, saying, “I’ve done that going into games thinking, ‘I don’t want to play this game. Please don’t select me.’ I guarantee you he’s going through that right now.”

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With just four games to go for Leeds’ fate to be decided in the English top-flight, Sam Allardyce, if he does come in should bench Illan Meslier.

The Englishman will know better than most that especially in a relegation scrap, the last thing a side needs is a goalkeeper badly out of form.

For even one of the best relegation firefighters in the business, the task will be insurmountable if he keeps the faith in Meslier for the time being.