Illan Meslier believes Leeds United are better equipped to deal with the rigours of the Premier League after backing Jesse Marsch with a spree of summer signings. The Whites have made seven new additions since the end of last season, with young forward Sonny Perkins becoming the latest to pen a deal at Elland Road following the expiry of his contract at West Ham United.
With Marc Roca, Rasmus Kristensen, Brenden Aaronson, Tyler Adams, Darko Gyabi and Luis Sinisterra also in the bag, Leeds have moved to strengthen a number of key areas across their squad. Meslier has spent time getting to know the club’s new faces during the pre-season tour of Australia, with Leeds spending time in Gold Coast, Brisbane and Perth as they prepare for the new campaign, and the goalkeeper likes what he has seen so far.
"It’s good to have some new players, of course we have already had Kalvin (and Raphinha) leaving, but they are good players to complete the team,” Meslier said on the club’s tour Down Under. “It’s good to see some new faces in the club and in the changing room.
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“Now we are a bigger roster, it’s better, we have good players and everyone has arrived with a fresh mentality after holidays and to come here (to Australia) is good for us and the club. It’s different than last season.
“I think Jesse is the same but now he has a pre-season to prepare, last season he arrived and we were in a difficult moment. I don’t think he has changed anything but he has his players, good players, who have arrived. I think the puzzle was missing some pieces but now we are complete.”
Meslier was a key man for the Whites last season as they battled to stay in the Premier League and his performance against Aston Villa at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on Sunday was enough to suggest he is approaching the new campaign in a confident mood. The France under-21 international pulled off a string of impressive saves in the game, including a penalty save to deny Philippe Coutinho from the spot.
The 22-year-old is widely regarded as one of the best young goalkeepers in world football and he certainly has no desire to see his progression grind to a halt.
“I want to be better than last season,” the goalkeeper added when asked about his personal targets this year. “I want to concede a lot less goals and if I can help the team try to be the best possible this is my job, but I want to be the best.”
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