Marcelo Bielsa says that he was impressed with Leeds United goalkeeping understudy Illan Meslier's performance against Arsenal on Monday, adding that the Frenchman had 'top level answers'.
The 19-year-old, who joined the Whites on a season-long loan last summer from Lorient, has been restricted to match time in just the under-23s so far this campaign.
But he was given a chance to impress against Premier League opposition in the FA Cup third round, after he started at the Emirates Stadium against the Gunners.
Mikel Arteta's side ultimately ran out 1-0 winners in a close-run encounter in north London, but speaking afterwards, Bielsa had nothing but praise for his shotstopper.
Speaking about Meslier's turn, the Argentine weighed in on the influence of both regular keeper Kiko Casilla and coach Marcos Abad as key to the teenager's performance, which came amid the current FA charge that Casilla still has hanging over his head.
"It was a great performance from him," he told his post-match press conference. "It was a hard decision [to drop Casilla] to take and Marcos Abad, our goalkeeper coach, he understood the decision was [for] Meslier [to] play tonight.
"Even if he hadn’t played well, all is going to be the same for him. The way he played is very positive for us looking at the future.
"When the team controlled the match he managed the ball well and when the team was controlled by the opponent he offered good, top level answers.
"Having one keeper [like] Kiko also has some influence on Meslier because they share a lot of time together and because Kiko, he deserved to be a reference to one young keeper.
"The group of the three goalkeepers, Meslier, Kiko and Kamil [Miazek] plus Marcos Abad, they have made a very good group and work very well together."
Visit our dedicated Leeds United page for the latest news, views and analysis from Elland Road.
