It’s the end of an era at Leeds United. Marcelo Bielsa is out as manager following a dismal run that has seen the Whites drop dangerously close to the Premier League relegation zone.
It was a sad and disappointing end to Bielsa’s successful, almost four-year stint at the club. Nonetheless, Bielsa’s stint will likely go down as one of the most memorable in the club’s long and illustrious history.
Likewise, Bielsa’s time at Leeds will likely be considered among the finest achievements of his critically acclaimed coaching career.
So read on below as SBOTOP takes a look back at Marcelo Bielsa’s time at Leeds United and how he will be remembered.
Bielsa’s brilliant Leeds turnaround
Marcelo Bielsa made his way to Leeds in 2018 during a rough time in his career. After successful spells with Argentina (1998-2004), Chile (2007-2011), and Athletic Bilbao (2011-13) had made his coaching philosophy quite popular among his peers – Pep Guardiola is his most notable fan – Bielsa then went through a trio of jobs at Marseille, Lazio, and Lille in the span of three years due to clashes with management.
But Bielsa quickly found a home at Leeds, who were desperate for someone to point them toward the right direction after over a decade of mismanagement. Bielsa duly obliged as he gave Leeds the full dose of his wholly unique coaching experience.
Some highlights from that season include him helping Kalvin Phillips transform into the ‘Yorkshire Pirlo’; the whole ‘Spygate’ saga, where Leeds were found to be peeking into opponents’ training sessions under his orders; and the unforgettable Aston Villa incident where he instructed his players to concede a goal in an incredible act of sportsmanship.
Those latter two incidents were examples of why Bielsa earned his nickname ‘El Loco’. His beautiful mind borders on the brilliant and the bizarre and can be quite a wild ride, but Leeds were fully on board.
Bielsa’s unique brand of coaching clearly worked as they finished third in the Championship in his first season in charge. Unfortunately, they fell off at the tail-end of the season to miss out on automatic promotion, then fell short in the play-offs.
But despite that disappointment, Bielsa had won over the club – from the players, whom he made so much better with his astute coaching, to the fans, who saw in Bielsa the man with the passion and the ability to lead the club back to the Premier League after many years away.
Bielsa leads Leeds back to the big-time
And Bielsa proved them all right as he led Leeds to the top of the Championship in the very next season. With the likes of Phillips, Patrick Bamford, Liam Cooper, and Pablo Hernandez leading the way, Leeds won promotion quite comfortably as their 16-year-long wait to return to the Premier League finally came to an end.
After accomplishing the top mission of promotion to the Premier League, then came the next challenge of surviving. There were doubts about Bielsa’s high-octane pressing style and whether it would be effective in the Premier League.
But Bielsa quite emphatically proved those doubters wrong as his Leeds side surpassed all expectations. Not only did they finish in the top half of the Premier League table, but they did so by playing Bielsa’s highly entertaining and attacking style that got them back in the top flight in the first place.
The 2020-21 season was a reaffirmation of Bielsa’s credentials as a top-calibre manager. Guiding Leeds to a top-half finish in their first season back in the Premier League is right up there in his list of top coaching achievements.
Bielsa will remain much beloved at Leeds
Who knows how many more Premier League 2022 highlights Bielsa and his Leeds team could have provided had it not been for the crippling injuries to their stars, Patrick Bamford and Kalvin Phillips?
While those injuries are not the only factor in Leeds’ struggles – and Bielsa will be the first to admit his personal shortcomings – they almost certainly wouldn’t be among the top contenders for relegation according to the Premier League 2022 odds if they had their English stars healthy and available for most of the season.
But despite how disappointingly it all ended, it will not change the fact that Bielsa will remain a much-beloved figure at Leeds for years to come. His arrival at Elland Road was the catalyst for their return to relevance after years of mediocrity and incompetence. And the fact that Bielsa’s stint at Leeds was by far his longest at club level spoke to how well he had settled. Just like Frank Sinatra, Bielsa did it his way, and the Leeds faithful loved him even more for it. They will forever be grateful for Bielsa guiding Leeds back to Premier League, and his three full seasons that were filled with goals and fun football will live long in the memory.
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