Dominic Matteo says Leeds United player’s improving form is bringing the best out of his Elland Road teammates

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With 14 games to go, Leeds United have slipped back into second place in the Championship table for at least 48 hours after Sheffield United secured a late 1-0 win over Luton Town.

Last Tuesday, Leeds were five points clear of Sheffield United. Since then, Chris Wilder’s side have played twice and won twice, beating Middlesbrough last week and then securing three points away at Luton.

Anel Ahmedhodzic’s late goal was enough to beat Luton. Chris Wilder said he doesn’t think Leeds will be under pressure going into Sunderland on Monday, a side that Leeds drew 2-2 with back in October.

A game that should have seen Leeds pick up all three points at the Stadium of Light, only for Illan Meslier to throw the ball in the back of the net with The Whites 2-1 up and seconds away from an excellent win.

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Dominic Matteo says Illan Meslier’s form is helping teammates

Meslier has come in for plenty of criticism this season. His mistake against Sunderland, failing to stop Preston’s opener and then his mistakes in the 3-3 draw with Hull, but Daniel Farke defended Meslier.

Since the £23k-a-week star’s howlers at Hull, he has starred. Six consecutive clean sheets including some brilliant saves against Coventry and Watford have seen Meslier grow in confidence and win fans’ trust.

Speaking to LUTV, Leeds icon Dominic Matteo said that Meslier’s form is helping to improve his Leeds teammates: “Meslier has made some important saves, Illan has been key with the amount of clean sheets.

“He’s had his critics but he’s really bounced back and he’s playing really well. When your goalie is playing well and keeping that many clean sheets, the confidence grows within the group,” Matteo summarised.

Illan Meslier is getting better and the stats prove it

Back in November, Meslier had a shot-save percentage that was some way below 70% and he sat way down in 18th place in the list of Championship goalkeepers. Now, he’s saving around 71.2% of shots.

That has taken Meslier from 18th back in November to a much-improved eighth. But he is still some way off the likes of James Trafford, Michael Cooper and West Brom’s former goalkeeper Alex Palmer.

If Leeds are to get promoted, Meslier’s form is crucial and it is improving rapidly. Six clean sheets in a row have gone a long way to Leeds’ recent run of wins and he will be hoping it continues on Monday night.