Marseille considering shock move for Arsenal summer signing

Illan Meslier is yet to play a single minute of first-team football under Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta (Picture: Getty)

Marseille are eyeing a move for Arsenal new boy Illan Meslier before the summer transfer deadline, according to reports in France.

Meslier allowed his contract with Leeds United to run down and joined Premier League champions Arsenal on a free transfer as back-up for David Raya last month.

The 26-year-old put pen to paper on a two-year contract at the Emirates, tying him to the Gunners until June 2028.

Across his six seasons with Leeds, Meslier racked up a total of 215 appearances in all competitions and helped the club win two promotions to the Premier League in 2020 and 2025.

However, Meslier found himself frozen out of Leeds’ squad by Daniel Farke last term, meaning he has not played a single minute of competitive football since as far back as March 2025.

Meslier only made substitute appearances against Girona, Real Betis and Borussia Dortmund in pre-season after agreeing terms in north London and it was Kepa Arrizabalaga who was named on the bench in both the Community Shield and Friday’s win over Coventry.

According to French publication Foot Mercato, Marseille have been alerted to the ‘precarious situation’ and are considering a stunning late move for Meslier before the transfer window slams shut.

Meslier featured against Dortmund in pre-season (Picture: Getty) The Frenchman signed a two-year deal with the Gunners (Picture: Getty)

Marseille are looking to strengthen their goalkeeping options while the market remains open, with club officials working behind the scenes to identify possible solutions to provide cover for number one Jeffrey de Lange.

It’s claimed Marseille’s management have picked out Meslier as one of their ‘top targets’ in this area, with De Lange currently the only senior goalkeeper in Bruno Genesio’s first-team squad.

The Ligue 1 outfit are said to be ‘very impressed’ by the shot-stopper’s profile despite his lack of playing time over the last 12 months.

However, the report stresses that Marseille may first be forced to reduce the size of their squad – in order to lower their wage bill – before they are able to make a ‘concrete offer’ for Meslier.

After signing for Arsenal, a ‘very proud’ Meslier said he was chomping at the bit help his new club win silverware ‘again and again’.

‘I’m extremely happy,’ the former Leeds and Lorient man told the club’s official website.

Meslier spent six years with Leeds before signing for Arsenal (Picture: Getty)

‘It’s a great day for me because I have just joined the champions. For me, Arsenal is the biggest club in England.

‘I’m very happy and very proud to join Arsenal. I cannot wait to show the love that I’ve got for this badge, and I cannot wait to win trophies with this team, because this is a club that needs to lift trophies again and again.” 

In addition to Meslier, Arsenal have strengthened their title-winning squad by landing Bruno Guimaraes, Christos Tzolis and Ezri Konsa from Newcastle, Club Brugge and Aston Villa respectively this summer.

The Gunners also activated their £35million option to sign Piero Hincapie on a permanent basis following the defender’s initial loan move from Bayer Leverkusen.

Leandro Trossard, Jakub Kiwior, Christian Norgaard and Karl Hein have all been allowed to leave the English champions.

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