Leeds United have a major injury concern about their number one goalkeeper, Lucas Perri, ahead of their trip to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham this weekend. They could be forced to make a change between the sticks this early in the season.
The Whites signed the Brazilian goalkeeper from Lyon in the summer to become their first-choice shot-stopper in the Premier League this season. He has started the first three league games, and while he has looked shaky, he is a commanding presence inside the penalty box for Leeds.
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However, there are serious doubts whether Perri will be fit to travel to London this Saturday as the goalkeeper picked up an injury during training this week.
Daniel Farke will provide more information on the injury during his pre-match press conference on Thursday, but if the Brazilian is ruled out, the manager will have to handle a mini goalkeeping crisis early in the campaign.
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Leeds United must be worried about Karl Darlow’s Premier League record
Darlow stepped up at the end of March last season when Illan Meslier’s errors were threatening to derail Leeds’ promotion hopes in the Championship.
The Welshman came in and steadied the ship as Leeds scored 100 points, won the Championship, and earned their ticket to the Premier League.
However, it was a clear sign that Farke didn’t trust him enough to be his number one in the Premier League when Leeds signed Perri from Lyon in the summer.
Darlow is ahead of Meslier in the pecking order and should logically start against Fulham if the Brazilian gets ruled out due to an injury. However, his record in the Premier League is pretty unflattering.
He has spent eight seasons in Premier League squads, seven of them at Newcastle, but has only managed 52 top-flight appearances, with a career-high of 25 coming in the 2020/21 campaign.
Ahead of this season, the 35-year-old last made the bench in the Premier League on New Year’s Eve in 2022, against Leeds.
Across 52 Premier League appearances, Darlow has managed just nine clean sheets (17.3%) while conceding 84 goals, an average of 1.6 per game.
His save xG across his Premier League career is -5.5, which means he conceded five more goals than he should have against the quality of shots he faced.
Darlow’s long pass completion rate is 41.3%, and while defenders usually win those headers, 60% of his long passes are still coming back towards him.
His horrendous error against Sheffield Wednesday in the EFL Cup is still fresh in the minds of Leeds fans.
Is Meslier the answer?
While Darlow is more experienced than Meslier, the latter has featured in more than double the number of matches in the Premier League compared to his senior teammate.
He has made 107 appearances in the Premier League, but has completely run out of favour at Elland Road, not even making the bench for the EFL Cup game last month.
However, Perri’s injury gives him a unique opportunity to return to the scheme of things, and his record looks better on paper than Darlow’s.
His save xG across three seasons in the Premier League was +2.2, which means he conceded two goals less than he should have against the quality of shots he faced.
Meslier also completed more than 56% of his long passes, which again looks better than Darlow’s record over a longer period of time.
However, the crisis for Leeds is that neither goalkeeper has Farke’s trust, and if Perri is ruled out, the manager would be selecting someone against Fulham who doesn’t have his confidence.
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