Leeds United will now make profit on player set for Elland Road free transfer: report

Leeds could be in receipt of some unexpected funds this winter, if reports in Belgium are to be believed.

It is claimed by Voetbal Nieuws that third-choice Elland Road goalkeeper Illan Meslier is a target for RSC Anderlecht.

The Brussels club are currently fifth in the Belgian top flight and reportedly having difficulty extending 33-year-old first-choice stopper Colin Coosemans' contract.

Illan Meslier could still earn Leeds United a transfer fee despite expiring contract

Meslier, meanwhile, is out of contract at the end of the 2025/26 season and having failed to secure a move in the summer window, appeared most likely to leave Leeds on a free transfer next June.

However, the possibility of a move to Anderlecht in January has arisen, which would see Leeds recoup a small fee for the goalkeeper's years of service at Elland Road.

Signed initially on loan from Lorient in France, Meslier joined permanently in the summer of 2020, upon promotion to the Premier League.

He established himself as Leeds' No.1 during the 2020/21 campaign and remained as such until the final quarter of last season, when a series of errors saw Daniel Farke replace him with back-up stopper Karl Darlow.

Over the summer, Leeds added Olympique Lyonnais goalkeeper Lucas Perri and during the Brazilian's absence earlier this campaign, Darlow once again came in to deputise.

Meslier's transfer fee five summers ago was to the tune of £5 million and despite his market value, according to Transfermarkt, being £12.2m (€14m), Leeds cannot expect to recoup that sort of figure for a player who will have six months remaining on his deal.

For that reason, Leeds' best case scenario is a sale of a few million pounds. Despite this hypothetical sum coming in below the figure he was originally signed for, the club could report the transfer as a profit in an accounting sense.

Leeds United goalkeepers

• Lucas Perri - 4 club appearances
• Karl Darlow - 20 apps
• Illan Meslier - 205 apps
• Alex Cairns - 1 app

This is because the majority, if not all, of Meslier's £5m transfer fee will have been amortised by now, so any fee Leeds receive can be banked as profit.

The club could also be expected to save approximately £750,000 in player wages, according to reports, if Meslier is sold during January.