Birmingham City ‘bullet dodged’ relief shared as Arsenal sign ex-Leeds United star | OneFootball

Birmingham City had made a move to sign Illan Meslier before the former Leeds United keeper opted to join Arsenal.

Birmingham City will expect to be in the mix for promotion this season, as they look to build on a decent first campaign back in the Championship last time out.

There was a belief that Blues could make it successive promotion, but whilst Chris Davies’ side fell short, there were positives to take.

However, it’s clear that improvements are required, but Birmingham will go into the window needing to make a few tweaks, as opposed to a major overhaul, and bringing in a new keeper is certain to be a priority.

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Birmingham City failed with move for Illan Meslier after Leeds United exit

James Beadle spent last season as Davies first-choice, but he has since returned to Brighton after his loan spell, which was unconvincing, even if the England U21 international did show why he is highly-rated at times.

But, his exit means Blues are on the lookout for a new keeper, and it has been claimed that they came close to signing Illan Meslier before he agreed to join Arsenal.

The Frenchman had been with Leeds since 2019, and whilst he initially impressed, Meslier has struggled for form in recent years.

He lost his place in Daniel Farke’s XI towards the end of Leeds’ promotion in 2025, and he was behind Lucas Perri and Karl Darlow last season, which means his last competitive appearance came around 16 months ago.

So, any deal for the 26-year-old would have come with major risk, and when asked by FLW about missing out on Meslier, Birmingham fan pundit Jason Moore admitted he was glad that the keeper has gone to the Premier League champions.

“It’s a mixed one, if you were to ask Blues fans you’d get a lot of different answers. I’d probably lean more towards it’s a bullet dodged, although if we had signed him I wouldn’t have been too upset, but I wouldn’t have been thrilled either.

“It’s probably the right move for him, to be a number two somewhere, in a great environment at Arsenal where they’ve just won the Premier League.

“After what happened at Leeds, Meslier being a number one probably isn’t right for him at the moment, unless he seriously dropped down a level or went to a new country where he could reset himself. So, yeah, for me, it’s a bullet dodged, and Radek Vitek is still the one I want. I’d be throwing absolutely everything at him, as I think he is quality.”

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Birmingham City can’t afford to make goalkeeper mistake this summer

This was a surprising link, as Meslier has been in a very difficult place in the past year, so for Birmingham to look to make him their number one would’ve been a bold move.

That’s not to say he couldn’t get back to his best levels, but there’s no denying that he has struggled at times at Leeds, and there would be major doubts over whether he is good enough to help Birmingham to promotion considering how long he has gone without playing regularly.

On a free, Blues obviously felt it was a risk worth taking, but you can understand why he has opted to join Arsenal, even if he will be backup.

Now, Birmingham have to look elsewhere, and it’s arguably the most important that the club will make this summer, as it’s such a crucial position.

So, it will be intriguing to see who does arrive at St. Andrew’s, and the link to Meslier suggests Blues are going to be in the market for someone with championship experience.