Speaking in his post-match press conference, Marcelo Bielsa attempted to play down suggestions Leeds could suffer from burnout this season.
What did he say?
The Whites suffered a 2-1 defeat to promotion rivals Fulham on Saturday afternoon, with third-placed Sheffield Wednesday cutting the gap to them to just eight points.
Having helped lead the way for the vast majority of the last campaign, Leeds fell by the wayside in the second-half of the season, losing ten of their final 23 games to miss out on promotion.
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Questions of burnout were emphatically put down by Bielsa in a press conference in February earlier this year, stating that it didn’t “have any basis”. And after Saturday’s loss to the Cottagers, the Argentine was quick to brush aside those fears once more.
He said (as quoted by Leeds Live): “I don’t link performances with dates or part of the season. When you play a lot of matches in a row, like now, you have to see if physical performance decreases and last season the physical performance never decreased. This season, Leeds is the team using fewer players than anyone. Fewer changes, fewer substitutions.
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“We kept the good physical performance all the season so far. So this point clearly: the part of the season is not linked with either physical performance or the results. I insist, from the last six points, we lost five. As for the date, the part of the year, I think there are more evident reasons.”
Caution
With eight points still separating them from Sheffield Wednesday, the signs are still very promising for Leeds to end their wait for a Premier League return. But having seen it slip through their fingers last season, Bielsa would do well to just tread with a little more caution this time around.
Former Athletic Bilbao midfielder Ander Herrera, who played under Bielsa at the Spanish side, admitted that the manager’s demands for intensity caused them to fade away.
“No-one was able to run as much as us, it was impossible. But I can’t lie to you, in the last months we couldn’t even move. Our legs said stop. We used to play always with the same players and were not at our best in the finals. We couldn’t run any more.”
Injuries and a small squad size no doubt played a part in Leeds’ promotion collapse last year – by February, their squad had missed a combined total of 140 games through injuries and knocks. Rather than staying on the gas for the entire campaign, if Bielsa can relent a little, particularly over this busy Christmas period, it may pay big dividends over the long run.
Bringing in fresh legs whether it’s from the academy or in the transfer market next month, or simply easing off in training, could be the key to ensuring Leeds can sustain their push for the Premier League for the duration of the season. They have already been burned once. Bielsa can now show he can use that experience to his advantage.
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