Leeds United icon Marcelo Bielsa could be back in the Premier League soon, but not at Elland Road
Marcelo Bielsa has reminded Leeds United supporters why he is nicknamed ‘El Loco’ in recent days and while he will remain as Uruguay manager, a return to England is growing more and more likely.
Having suffered a 5-1 loss to his old protege Mauricio Pochettino during the international break, there was talk of the AUF sacking Bielsa, or the Argentine even resigning. Certainly, criticism was aplenty.
Would you have Marcelo Bielsa back at Leeds?
It saw Bielsa opt to stage an impromptu press conference on Thursday evening. There was talk that Bielsa could decide to leave his post, but it turned out that Bielsa wanted to address the criticism head-on.
Describing himself as “toxic”, Bielsa confirmed he would not be resigning and intended to take Uruguay to the World Cup next summer. His long-term future at Uruguay remains in doubt after the World Cup.
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Premier League clubs considering Marcelo Bielsa next summer
According to The Sun’s Alan Nixon on his Patreon channel, Bielsa could end up in the Premier League next summer. The controversy of the last few days has convinced higher-ups to add Bielsa to the list.
Daniel Farke and Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds numbers:
Daniel Farke
Games – 116
Wins – 64
Draws – 28
Losses – 24
Win Rate – 55.17%
Marcelo Bielsa
Games – 170
Wins – 81
Draws – 30
Lost – 59
Win Rate – 47.65%
Nixon reports ‘several’ Premier League clubs on red alert, with Bielsa now likely to leave Uruguay after the World Cup campaign. He is not the only former Leeds manager who will be at next summer’s World Cup.
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Thomas Christiansen has led Panama to World Cup qualification, while Jesse Marsch’s Canada are one of the three host nations. There is no mention as to which club could eye Bielsa, but Leeds could be one.
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Marcelo Bielsa’s record at Uruguay and Leeds United compared
Having spent three and a half years in charge at Elland Road, Bielsa has managed more games as Leeds manager than any of his other jobs. The Argentine clocked up a whopping 170 games as Leeds gaffer.
In contrast, Bielsa has only managed Uruguay in 34 matches since taking the job, winning 15 of those. But after a good start, Bielsa has only won five of his last 18 games, failing to score on 10 separate occasions.
JobSpellGamesWinsDrawsLossesWin ratioLeeds2018-202217081305947.7Uruguay2023-now341512744.1
After such an incident in the past week, it does feel like Bielsa will leave Uruguay next summer. Whether he will return to the Premier League remains to be seen, but if so, Leeds will be one of the front runners.
