Leeds United had been in the market for a new starting goalkeeper earlier this year.
Illan Meslier endured a dreadful end to last season and so there had been a temptation to replace him, regardless of the division Leeds ended up in.
Leeds were relegated from the Premier League in May and the message throughout the summer was that Meslier would move on, until Daniel Farke came in and seemingly changed that.
Karl Darlow was brought in from Newcastle United and had undoubtedly been expecting to come in as number one, but Farke has stuck with Meslier, who is now slowly getting back to his best.
However, had Leeds stayed up, it could’ve been a whole lot different. As per Lions de L’Atlas, the Whites were among the clubs keen on signing Sevilla shotstopper Yassine Bounou.
Leeds wanted Bounou, finished 13th in Ballon d’Or
Bounou has since joined the clutch of players moving to Saudi Arabia, making the move to Al-Hilal in the summer alongside the likes of Neymar, Aleksandr Mitrovic and Ruben Neves.
However, it was his performances in the World Cup that really caught the eye of the footballing world, with his former Sevilla teammates Jules Kounde hailing him as the ‘complete goalkeeper’ during the tournament.
Playing a key role in Morocco’s incredible run to the semi-finals, which included a superb performance in the last-16 penalty shootout win over Spain, Bounou finished 13th in the Ballon d’Or.
Though Aston Villa’s Emi Martinez did win the best goalkeeper award, Bounou was actually the highest ranked in his position in the official Ballon d’Or list.
Leeds were linked with Bounou as recently as April, but of course, a move would only have ever materialised if they had secured Premier League survival.
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