Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier has said that he would be interested in a move for Chelsea – but only if he is made their first-choice goalkeeper [via Fabrizio Romano on Twitter].

In Romano’s tweet, he quoted Meslier, who said: “Officially, I still belong to LUFC. I will have to think about what could be the best project.

“Chelsea? If it is to go and be on the bench… I’m not interested in that. If it’s to be the number one, of course, you can’t say I’m not interested in Chelsea.”

Who else, besides Chelsea, is interested in a transfer for Illan Meslier?

Currently, Chelsea appear to be the most heavily-linked club with a move for Meslier. Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur were both thought to be interested in the player earlier in the year, but nothing has materialised regarding a summer transfer.

Would Illan Meslier be an upgrade over Chelsea’s current goalkeepers?

Over the past few seasons, Chelsea have had something of an ongoing crisis in the goalkeeping department. Kepa Arrizabalaga was signed for a massive fee of around £70 million back in 2018, but has failed to establish himself as a top goalkeeper in the Premier League.

When Chelsea snapped up Edouard Mendy in 2020, their plight finally appeared to have been brought to an end – but it was yet another false dawn. Although Mendy had a strong start to life at Stamford Bridge, injuries and lapses of poor form have scuppered his spell with the Blues.

Meslier, as things stand, is arguably inferior to both goalkeepers still at Chelsea. Despite this, he is only young and has plenty of room for growth – additionally, he has already shown plenty of potential.

Nevertheless, Chelsea have taken many risks on young players over the last 12 months. They can ill-afford for another gamble to not pay off – as such, they may be better served looking for a more experienced player to put between the sticks.