Leeds United
Championship
Leeds make bid for surprise Meslier successor after including keeper in seven-man hitlist
Leeds United have made an offer for Fenerbahce goalkeeper Altay Bayindir, it has been claimed, after Illan Meslier was named as one of seven players they could cash in on for £10m or more.
Meslier came under pressure towards the end of last season, which culminated in Leeds suffering relegation from the Premier League. There is now an expectation that Leeds will be selling him this summer, since he is still fairly marketable.
Indeed, Leeds Live has revealed that Meslier is one of seven players Leeds think they could sell for an eight-figure transfer fee, in order to help them regenerate their squad.
The other players in question are Patrick Bamford, Crysencio Summerville, Jack Harrison, Tyler Adams, Luis Sinisterra and Wilfried Gnonto, although Leeds are not planning to sell all of them in one go.
If Meslier is one of the options they sacrifice, though, they will need to sign a new goalkeeper. With that in mind, As Marca has claimed Leeds have put an offer in for Bayindir.
The bid is said to have been in the region of €5m (£4.3m). However, Fenerbahce will reject it and refer back to Bayindir’s release clause of €7m (£6.1m).
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Leeds need new goalkeeper quickly
Bayindir, 25, is the latest of several goalkeepers to be linked with Leeds since their relegation. Others have included Freddie Woodman, Karl Darlow and Marek Rodak.
With Joel Robles also leaving for Al Qadsiah in Saudi Arabia, they might need two new additions to their goalkeeping department.
In their first pre-season friendly, which was a 2-0 loss to Man Utd, new boss Daniel Farke chose Kristoffer Klaesson as Leeds’ starting goalkeeper before giving the second half to Dani van den Heuvel.
But aged 22 and 20 respectively, neither of them have the necessary experience to be number one across an arduous season in the Championship yet.
Whether Leeds will raise their bid for Bayindir – if indeed it was genuine – or look elsewhere should become clearer in the coming weeks. Their Championship campaign will get underway on August 6 with a home match against Cardiff City, so some clarity will be needed soon.
Earlier in the summer, Meslier admitted he would be interested in joining Chelsea if they were to firm up their interest and install him as their new number one, but whether that will be his precise next destination is still unknown.
His contract at Elland Road, for what it’s worth, is still due to last until 2026.
Meslier conceded 73 goals from 38 appearances last season. In contrast, Bayindir let in 45 from 40, in a much more respectable ratio.
Fenerbahce have the Turkey international under contract until 2027, but would be powerless to keep him if Leeds lifted their offer by €2m.