Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier produced a howl for the ages on Friday night when he gifted Sunderland an injury-time equalizer in the teams’ Championship clash.
Daniel Farke’s team went to the Stadium of Light hoping to move to the top of the second division standings, and a win could see them leapfrog their rivals in the standings.
They looked at least close to doing so as they went into the final moments of the match 2-1 up, a result that would have seen them tied on points with the Black Cats and trailing in goals scored.
But goalkeeper Meslier was responsible for an error that will surely go down in history by conceding the tie with just a few seconds left in the game.
Leeds players stood with their heads in their hands as they looked towards their number 1 as Sunderland celebrated a result that could prove invaluable amid the promotion battle.
Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier produced one of the all-time howlers that cost Leeds a vital victory over Sunderland.
The Frenchman seemed to have control of a ball inside the area that was heading towards him but he overlooked it and entered the goal.
Meslier appeared to reach out and pick up an object in his six-yard box after the goal went in.
It was Alan Browne who claimed the goal, and the Irish midfielder’s hopeful pass seemed to float kindly into Meslier’s arms.
Instead, however, the Frenchman tried to pick up the ball and saw it escape his clutches as he retreated to try and keep it out for a second attempt.
However, it was too little, too late, and the Sunderland players walked away celebrating as Meslier looked towards the pitch.
The 24-year-old could be seen picking up a dark object from the ground afterwards, with it unclear whether the ball had hit him as it bounced before arriving for him to pick up.
He appeared to show frustration as Sky Sports co-commentator Don Goodman described the howler as “up there” in terms of all-time errors.
“It’s a gift, it’s a gift,” Goodman added. ‘You can’t legislate about it. If you’re Leeds, how can you legislate for something like this?
After the match, Browne told Sky Sports: “I turned around thinking the boys would be angry with me after I hit him.” Then the goalie threw it into the net, so fair play to him.
“I’m almost embarrassed, but I’ll still claim it.”
He was seen apparently showing his teammates that he felt the ball had changed direction.
A win would have put Leeds level on points with Sunderland at the top of the league, only behind them in goals scored.
Fans took to social media to give their opinion on the goal, and the blame was placed on Meslier despite the apparent mysterious object on the field.
“The worst goalkeeper you’ve ever seen in Meslier,” posted one fan on X, formerly Twitter.
Another added: “I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say I want that to be Illan Meslier’s last game for the club.”
A third wrote: “I would make Meslier catch 10,000 balls in a dark room as punishment.” What the hell happened there?
Meslier also received criticism for apparently having a laugh with Sunderland’s full-time manager Regis Le Bris, who was his coach at Lorient in France.
Meslier has made a total of 184 appearances since joining Leeds from the French club in 2019 and was a regular in their team when they were relegated from the Premier League in the 2022-23 season.
When asked about his former player before the clash, Le Bris said: “I like the person and the player, but I hope he knocks the ball out of his goal.”
After the match, he said: “I’m happy for us, but not happy for him.” We talked about the action after the game. He said the ball changed direction when it hit the ground and he was surprised. Everyone can make a mistake but he is still a very good goalkeeper.
“Football is always unpredictable. We can’t anticipate that kind of mistake, but we worked until the end to make it possible.”
Meslier was also criticized for apparently laughing alongside Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris (pictured), who was his coach in France.
Meanwhile, Leeds’ Daniel Farke said the end of the match was “heartbreaking and horrendous”.
Leeds manager Farke admitted: “Losing two points like this is heartbreaking and horrendous.” I have won and lost many points in the last second, but I have not experienced something like this in 30 years in professional football. We are very, very sad for the boys.
‘Normally the goalkeeper takes the ball, clears it and the referee blows the final whistle and the game is won. Pascal Struijk said the ball bounced and jumped completely in the other direction because there was a mark on the field. But I can’t tell you if that was the case.
Leeds now sit third in the table heading into the rest of the weekend’s games, jumping two places ahead of West Brom and Sheffield United.
They could find themselves in eighth place when the games end, while Sunderland remain top but could be overtaken by Burnley, Sheffield United and West Brom depending on results.
