Squat a big task ahead
Marcelo Bielsa, in his trademark crouch, watches on as his Leeds side find the Premier League a lot tougher in their second season back
THE disciples of Marcelo Bielsa say he hasn’t been given the funds other managers get to push their teams on.
Leeds certainly have not spent what Aston Villa have and there’s a direct comparison between the two clubs in that they both boast a proud history and both recently returned to the Premier League promised land.
So I get why those who worship at the altar of Bielsa firmly believe he’d have his club pushing for Europe if serious funds had been made available to him.
The problem with the Argentine, though, is that even though his methods – like the double sessions, the hard work, the high pressing – got Leeds from the Championship to the Premier League and kept them there comfortably, it’s still blindingly obvious there are inherent faults within them.
While those who have learned from him over the years, like Manchester City chief Pep Guardiola and Paris Saintgermain manager Mauricio Pochettino, have taken all the good stuff from his philosophy and worked out which parts need discarding, the one person who has never recognised the weaknesses is Bielsa himself.
That really annoys me because overall
Leeds haven’t been able to defend or attack at a consistent level in the seasonand-a-half since they won
promotion
it’s a good philosophy. The trouble is, he just can’t see its flaws.
Leeds haven’t been able to defend or attack at a consistent level in the season-and-a-half since they won promotion back to the top flight (right).
And while I know they have had injury issues at the back in that time, I do wonder whether the end of this season would be the right time for Leeds to say ‘Thank you and goodbye’ to the 66-year-old and bring in someone who will kick the club on again.
It’s not like Bielsa has some amazing track record in English football, other than getting Leeds promoted and then to ninth in the Premier League.
Indeed, he has no track record of winning big trophies whatever country he’s worked in.
He has managed a couple of big clubs in Leeds and Marseille, but that, and the fact he has influenced younger coaches who have gone on to do much better, shouldn’t be enough to keep him at Elland Road in perpetuity.
Realistically, the expectation for Leeds this season is a mid-table finish, something that will only satisfy their faithful supporters for so long.
I’ve already talked about the Big Six having become a Big Eight and soon it will become a Big 10. So Leeds now
need a manager who will make sure they are at that level – season in, season out.
And I’m not convinced Bielsa is that man. Look at the league table. Leeds are languishing in 15th place after 11 games and have won only two of those.
If I were pulling the strings at Leeds, I’d be looking to replace Bielsa with someone with experience of regularly competing for European places in one of the big three European leagues.
Kinks
Someone who has done it in England, Italy or Spain and who can iron out those kinks so Leeds do everything Bielsa does well over the course of an entire season and not just for parts of it. Someone who’ll make them more defensively sound and stop them conceding with the regularity they do.
A man who will add a sound philosophy higher up the table.
With that in mind, I’d be setting a target of 10th place for Bielsa this season. I’d make him accountable for getting them there, then I’d say bye-bye.
It would be a bit like Norwich sacking Daniel Farke immediately after their first win – it gives the players a lift and the new manager something to work on.
Bielsa will always be a legend with the Leeds fans for ending the Championship cycle. But in terms of the pounds, shillings and pence value of his £8million-a-year contract, it’s just not there.