Medical expert Ben Dinnery believes Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier may need to wear protective equipment against Southampton on Saturday, Football Insider report.
The Lowdown: Injuries galore…
The international break came at the right time for the Whites after they registered back-to-back wins against Norwich and Wolves.
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The 3-2 victory at Molineux came at a cost, with Patrick Bamford, Diego Llorente, Mateusz Klich and Meslier all being forced off due to injury.
Bamford has been ruled out for six weeks with a fresh foot problem, but Llorente and Klich have returned to training.
Leeds confirmed earlier this week that Meslier was yet to return to Thorp Arch training, but the club expect him to be fit for the visit of Southampton.
The Latest: Dinnery reacts
Dinnery, who contributes for Sky Sports, was talking to FI after that update from the club emerged.
He labelled the injury as ‘nasty’, however, the expert admitted he’d be ‘very surprised’ if he wasn’t available for selection on Saturday, hinting at possible protective padding.
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“It was very, very painful.
“He hasn’t trained in the first week of the international break but Leeds are fairly confident for the Southampton game.
“It may be that he has some sort of protective padding to help that area. But I’m fairly confident this will just be a case of pain management.
“It was a nasty one that forced him off but I’d be very surprised if he wasn’t available for the game against Southampton.”
The Verdict: Fingers crossed
The Frenchman is yet to miss a Premier League game this season, so you’d expect Jesse Marsch will be keeping his fingers crossed that he can call upon the 22-year-old once again at Elland Road.
Meslier leads the way when it comes to saves made in 2021/22, becoming a key member of the squad following promotion to the Premier League.
He may well require protective padding on his bruised upper thigh and lower torso, as Dinnery mentions, and if that helps, it should be a no brainer from the Leeds medical staff.
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