"We're not d**king around with the play-offs anymore" - A Leeds United story

[KP23]

Collapse. Exhaustion. Defeat.

In the midst of Marcelo Bielsa's debut season in charge of Leeds United, it never seemed it would end this way. Players inconsolable on the pitch, fans distraught in the stands and club officials clearly heartbroken.

The legendary Argentinian had never coached within the British Isles previously; France, Spain and Italy - for a few days - experienced Bielsa, the almost mythical figure in world football. Journalists do not get interviews, broadcasters do not get the polished, safe message they crave and you do not get him. English football's ever increasing focus on the financial aspect of the sport has seen Bielsa - a coach less focused on the monetary issues - appear left behind. Not in the sense that he is a dinosaur, merely that his emphasis on morals, values and social responsibility do not apply within the instant gratification culture of today's footballing culture in the UK and in a wider sense, society itself.

A tumultuous spell under Paul Heckingbottom taught United's owner Andrea Radrizzani that there was simply not time to wait around and that it was time for the Whites to push on and end a 15 year spell outside the top flight. Enter Bielsa.

Bielsa is not the typical appointment that a football club makes. You do not choose Bielsa, Bielsa chooses you. He romanticises. He enjoys the challenge of bringing a club back from it's knees rather than a club that has everything already in place and therefore has less patience. Should you meet his long list of demands, the rewards speak for themselves.

Under Heckingbottom, United's squad looked uninterested, out of their depth and below par. Bielsa transformed them into a squad that sat within the top 2 of the Championship, a notoriously difficult league, for much of the season. The squad looked devoted to the club and challenge, above the playing level and performed to the level expected.

A calamitous collapse at the end of the season saw United drift into the play offs. They faced Derby County and comfortably won the first leg yet suffered another calamitous collapse in the second leg, losing on aggregate. All the hard work was undone. It was no tactical masterclass from the opposition; Leeds simply Leeds'd themselves and were the masters of their own downfall.

After the smoke had settled, the hard work begun again. Angus Kinnear, the club's Managing Director, quoted as saying "we're not dicking around with the play offs anymore" on the Amazon documentary that charted the first season under Bielsa.

A simple message, a message that sets a tone for the 2019-2020 campaign under the Argentinian that the faithful followers of the Whites adore so much.

 

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Two leave Elland Road as Bielsa begins squad surgery

The demons of last season's pain for Leeds United are clearly being excised with no delay, as United announced the departure of two fan favourites today. It is understood that Marcelo Bielsa has analysed his squad in his own inimitable manner and has identified those that will head into the 2019-2020 campaign with him and those that will move on.

Two players that were to move on had transfers announced this morning, on the club's website leedsunited.com, after breaking on the club's official Twitter account.

The first transfer announced was the departure of cult hero Gaetano Berardi. Berardi, at Elland Road since 2014, had developed into a popular member of the United squad during his time at the club. His unique brand of aggression and bravery, combined with buying into the classic Revie philosophy of "side before self, every time", was always sure to make him well appreciated in West Yorkshire. Berardi was played out of position at both left back and centre back with United during his spell but adjusted well both times and without protest; something to always receive acclaim for. It was his red card against Derby in the play-off semi-final last season that many saw as the point United's luck in the tie changed, leading to self-implosion, but sources indicate this is purely a move for financial reasons.

It is common knowledge that the Swiss defender was in the last season of his deal at the club and with Berardi being 31 years old at the season's start date, United saw fit to cash in. Italian interest - Bologna and Lecce - was shown but the feeling was that the offer didn't meet the Whites valuation of Berardi. Enter Burnley. The Clarets weighed in with a £5,000,000 bid and Leeds duly accepted. Negotiations between player and club were thrashed out over two days and an agreement surfaced; the player was on his way to Lancashire. United's media team did pay tribute to Berardi on the official website, having understood the popularity of the player, but the general consensus was that £5,000,000 for this particular player given his situation is healthy business that has been well conducted.

The next to leave was Macedonian left sided defender and winger Ezgjan Alioski. Bleach blonde Alioski had been at the club for two seasons and due to his energetic nature, a willingness to run every last centimetre and his versatility, had grown into another fan favourite. The feeling through his time in West Yorkshire is one of a player that has never truly met the high expectations of him from the fanbase; this was a player linked with Leicester City after their title win in 2016 and the customary Youtube compilations sold United's followers a dream that they were getting a player of high quality for the level. Whether it was the ultra high expectations of United's fans or the player under performing is one to be discussed in the pubs and clubs for years to follow but Alioski was truthfully a bit hit-and-miss. On some days, he looked unbeatable, capable of beating any defender or stopping any attacker, on other days he looked like he wasn't cut out for the level of the Championship.

However, despite the lack of consistency in the Macedonian man's performances, interest in him was high after the season had finished. Burnley came in for a bite at another Leeds United cherry after acquiring Berardi but it is understood their valuation of Alioski was at the opposite end of the scale to United's. Red Bull Salzburg of Austria tested United's resolve with an £8,000,000 bid but this was also rejected. The winning bid in the end came from China. Shenzhen FC, managed by Roberto Donadoni, tested United's resolve with an offer of £10,000,000 and this was accepted by the West Yorkshire club. Negotiations were settled fairly quickly and the move was announced in a timely fashion on United's Twitter page. It is understood this is not neccessarily a player United wanted to sell but the offer from China was too good to turn down for a player that sources tell us was not expected to feature heavily in the first team.

Although around £15,000,000 has been brought into the club's coffers with these two deals, it is believed a share of this will go on repaying miscellanous debts to ensure United are as self-sustainable as possible. However, the majority of this will be spent on strengthening the squad. Sources have shared that United's priority is to bring in two centre backs after the departure of Pontus Jansson to Brentford and the club is moving quickly to resolve this issue. A goalkeeper may also be on the cards, as well as another winger, but Bielsa is trying to promote from within United's rich vein of youth prospects before spending money on replacements.

With regards to further departures, Kiko Casilla's future is up in the air. The Spaniard still has significant quality for the level but his nightmare performances towards the end of last season, combined with high wages, have seen talk of his departure. The difficulty may come from moving him on due to Casilla having 4 years remaining on his deal, however, this is only speculation at this stage. Ouasim Bouy, the ex-Ajax and Juventus midfielder that was highly rated, looks to be moved on this Summer. Fellow Under 23 players Ousama and Adrian Balboa have also been put up for sale by the Whites as they attempt to tidy up the club's squad options at all levels.​

 

[Crayth]

Good luck mate, will follow from now on.​

 

[KP23]

United sign Romagnoli


After the departures of Ezgjan Alioski and Gaetano Berardi, the Whites have found themselves with cash to spend. The priority for Bielsa and the recruitment team was always strengthening the centre of defence depth but the addition of a tranfer kitty of around £9m from these player sales was able to assist United in their hunt for options.

What Bielsa expects from his central defenders is a closely guarded secret. However, it's understood a series of domestic options were explored initially. Crystal Palace's Martin Kelly, Leicester's title-winner Wes Morgan and West Ham's Winston Reid were eyed by the club but it's understood that none of the trio were comfortable dropping a level to be a rotation option or backup to Liam Cooper or Ben White.

Leeds then explored the continent and found their man. Enter Stefan Bell, of Bundesliga outfit Mainz. Negotiations ran over the course of several days, with United's recruitment team meeting Mainz officials in Germany. Much back and forth regarding the transfer fee for the player took place and eventually, a fee of £2.5m leading to £3.5m including add-on's was agreed. However, the player himself had no interest in joining United as a squad depth option and the deal was quickly called off.

The Whites then looked closer to home again. Alfie Mawson of Fulham and Liam Moore of Reading were considered but deemed too expensive and unlikely to accept a rotational role. Bielsa's recruitment team then looked at Daniel Ayala of Middlesbrough but negotiations moved too slowly; the same applied with Jake Cooper of Millwall.

With United's options running out, they turned to Italy and Empoli of Serie B. Simone Romagnoli appeared to fit the bill - good aerially, positionally, a good tackler, quick, composed and a good leader. What's more, the Italian was available for transfer and United moved quick to secure his services for a fee of £1.6m. The Director Of Football Victor Orta completed negotiations for Romagnoli and contract negotiations were resolved quickly. It is believed Romagnoli is pleased to feature as a squad player and will be paid around £10,000 a week at United.

Romagnoli will almost certainly replace the giant sized gap that Pontus Jansson left, with the Italian standing at 6ft4in. His career has largely been spent in Italy's second division; after starting out at Milan as a youngster, spells at Foggia, Pescara, Spezia, five years at Carpi and last season's loan spell at Empoli has seen him pick up plenty of experience. The Italian is the brother of Milan's captain Alessio Romagnoli and the Whites faithful will be hoping he provides performances of a similar standard to the man from the San Siro. He has been capped at Under 21 level for the Azzurri and will be hoping to provide further performances that gain admiring eyes within the national team setup, describing his dream as "to feature alongside my brother in the blue of Italy".

Sources close to the club have revealed United are still after another centre back and do not yet see a deal for Daniel Ayala or Jake Cooper dead but may well choose to promote highly-rated youngster Oliver Casey from the Under 23's to their fourth choice centre back.​

 

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One in, One out at Elland Road

With United's players only 1 week from returning from pre-season training, the recruitment team at Elland Road have been working night and day to secure Marcelo Bielsa's targets. Simone Romagnoli has already joined from Empoli for £1.6m to bolster United's central defence and is already raring to go. However, Marcelo Bielsa still felt that a lack of depth at centre back was apparent and had instructed the recruiters to work to land his proposed targets. Director of Football Victor Orta and Chief Scout Gaby Ruiz have travelled all over Europe, taking in Italy, Spain, Scotland, France and Germany to try and complete deals for players. Their hard work can not be denied.

Finally, last night, it paid off. Previous target Liam Moore has joined Brighton for £11m and deals for the names previously linked were proving problematic to complete. Again, United went back to Italy and found their man. Club officials travelled to Rome and met up with Biancocelesti chiefs to discuss terms on a deal for Patric, of Lazio. The Barcelona youth product had been transfer listed as he wasn't part of Simone Inzaghi's plans for the upcoming campaign. On wages of around £25,000 per week, a deal would be difficult to complete. Hence, United went for the loan option. It is understood that the Whites will pay in the region of 50% of Patric's wages and a nominal monthly contribution to meet terms set by Lazio.

Patric is a versatile player and one that ticks many boxes for Bielsa; he has all the physical and technical attributes for the competitive level United play at and has the experience of both the La Masia academy system and Serie A football to bring to United's ranks. It's felt that he will be a rotational centre back - possibly with fellow loanee Ben White - but the Spaniard can also play at right back and defensive midfield so gives United increased depth in a number of areas. Patric is expected to jet into West Yorkshire over the next 48 hours and join up with the rest of the squad for training next week.

The noises coming out of Elland Road point to further recruitment in mind. A central midfielder that can be also played in the attacking third is being targeted, as are another winger and a striker. With around £8m to spend, United will have to spend wisely and ensure that value for money is their key goal.

In other news, Elland Road outcast Ouasim Bouy has left the club for the season. A loan spell to League One Ipswich Town has been completed with them paying 100% of Bouy's wages. The Dutchman was brought to West Yorkshire with much intrigue - previous clubs on his CV include Juventus and Ajax - yet he's failed to ever look interested and his career at Elland Road looks to be over.

There are 7 more days to go until the Whites pre-season training kicks off and it is believed Bielsa wants all of his new men in by the time training resumes. Whether that will happen is another subject of interest itself.​

 

[KP23]

No more business?

With time ticking away and bringing Marcelo Bielsa ever closer to the start of United's pre-season training, getting the players in that he wanted was always going to be a race against the clock challenge, more than anything else. The additions of loanee Patric from Lazio and Simone Romagnoli have bolstered the Whites defence but it was understood Bielsa was still actively seeking a player capable of performing in the number 10 role, a winger and a striker. With the previous 48 hours business done by United, it looks like they have beaten the clock in this particular challenge.

The priority for United after improving the defence was first and foremost, a number 10. After Samu Saiz's departure in last season's campaign, United have been crying out for a player that can flip a game on it's head in an instant and Izzy Brown was not the man capable of doing this last season. United were prepared to spend big on this player and seriously considered both Ebere Eze and Tom Cairney of QPR and Fulham respectively - two of the Championship's leading players in the role. Strong sources from inside Elland Road indicate that Motherwell's highly rated youngster David Turnbull was in contract talks with the club after a deal had been agreed, however, Turnbull appeared not to fully commit to United's project and the Whites called the move off. Bradley Dack was also studied as was Henri Lansbury but the latter's injury issues ruled him out. United did complete a deal in West London, however, it would not be with Eze or Cairney or even their respective clubs. Officials from the Whites' met with Chelsea and proposed a loan of Serbian attacking midfielder Danilo Pantic.

Pantic is one of many young players that have had the Chelsea approach to youth football - that is, a player with high potential purchased and farmed out anywhere and everywhere on loan. In a sense, United's loan deal for him only adds to the issue, however, it is understood that work permit problems deemed a permanent move difficult to complete. Bielsa wanted the young Serbian in his squad and believes he is a player of high potential; to that end, United have included a £3m buyout fee in his contract should they wish to purchase him. It is understood that Leeds will cover the wages in full of Pantic. Pantic is a youth international at all Serbian levels and is seen to have a bright future in the game - this move benefits both the player and the purchasing club, in that it gives United an out and out number 10 that can be used as such.

After United had secured the services of Pantic, director of football Victor Orta and CEO Angus Kinnear again boarded a plane for Italy. The objective: a winger. With Helder Costa, Pablo Hernandez and Jack Harrison already filling slots out wide, the move was purely for squad depth. United's officials again visited a location they were familiar with.

Rome. Good terms had been developed with the loan deal that saw United bring Patric to Elland Road and with that in mind, a move for transfer-listed Ricardo Kishna was simple to pull off. Kishna had once been a player with a huge potential - many believed he'd follow in the footsteps of Van der Vaart, Overmars, Bergkamp and all the other Ajax stars after being developed with the Amsterdam club. However, this hasn't turned out the way it probably should have done. After joining Lazio for 4m in 2015, he failed to impress and featured in only a bit-part role the following season. Loans to Lille and two seasons at Den Haag again bore no fruit.

His time in Rome has come to an end; an end many expected but it's ultimately a deal that can be looked on as disappointing for the Biancocelesti. However, Kishna is still only 24 years old. With a point to prove and with one of the most influential coaches in footballing history on his side, it could well be an inspired signing for the Whites. It is understood a fee of £2m was agreed and Kishna is realistic about his role about the club, leading to United paying less in his contract than can probably be expected. Kishna did turn down fellow West Yorkshire side Huddersfield Town to join the Whites and could well be a game changer at this level, should United be able to get a tune from him.

However, that appears to be Leeds' incoming business finished for now. 4 new signings - mainly for squad depth purposes - would have sounded about right for Leeds at the start of this transfer window and each player certainly looks more than good enough for the league. Whether they will take to Bielsa's unique brand of football is another, more imposing question in itself.

There were two further outgoings at the club, in the form of youth goalkeepers. U23 keeper Kamil Miazek had been transfer listed by the club and joins Scottish outfit Hibernian, whilst fellow U23 stopper Harrison Male will join United's feeder club Cultural Leonesa of Spain for a season.
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[KP23]

Successful Pre-Season for United

With Marcelo Bielsa having seemingly completed all of his business planned for Leeds in this transfer window, he was then able to focus on his favourite part of the game: coaching.

As noted previously, Bielsa's demand was that all business was completed in time for the start of the pre-season schedule and United worked hard to successfully meet that demand. A tune-up game against Knaresborough in the midst of strength and conditioning work took place, before a visit to Portugal and then fixtures against sides back home. The Whites won all 8 matches - granted, against weaker teams - but did so in comfortable fashion and the progression aspect of pre-season appeared to develop extremely well.

The win against Knaresborough was a routine one. A mix of United's strongest players and youngsters - likely to be this season's squad depth options - made up an eleven that looked completely in control against Knaresborough at all times, as would be expected. First half goals from Patrick Bamford and loanee Jack Harrison saw United head into the half-time interval two goals to the good. Second half strikes from Mateus Klich, talisman Pablo Hernandez and left back Leif Davis increased the Whites' lead to five before the referee blew for full time. Bielsa had spent the week drilling his players purely with strength and conditioning exercises - no technical or tactical work - to get them back into the swing of things and prepared for another season of Bielsaball.

A trip to Portugal then ensued. Local side Estrela were the first of two opponents and United comfortably saw them aside with goals from Luke Ayling, Barry Douglas, Stuart Dallas and Helder Costa securing a 4-0 win for the Whites. A 3-0 victory over Cova de Piedade followed - strikes from new signing Simone Romagnoli, Mateus Klich and Jack Harrison were the recipe for United's success in the game. By this stage, United's players had done 2 weeks of non-ball-based work and looked to have worked off all of the treats that will have been savoured on their own holidays.

At this point, we understand Bielsa was then introducing technical and tactical work into the training schedules, but this was alongside 2 strength and conditioning sessions per day; the emphasis was still on drilling the players physically for what is a long season anyway but longer under Bielsa due to the demands his playing style puts on the players.

Two victories over local sides were the next steps in United's pre-season. Local team Farsley - a 30 minute train ride - were the first to face United and took a complete hammering. New signing Patric bagged twice, as did Jamie Shackleton and goals for Mateusz Bogusz, Stuart Dallas, Barry Douglas and fellow new boy Ricardo Kishna saw the Whites run out comfortable 8-0 winners. It's fair to say there is honesty about the gulf in quality between Leeds and Farsley so too much can't be read into the victory but it can't be denied that United did look smooth and ready to continue on from last season. The Whites then travelled to nearby Halifax, from the National League, and ran out comfortable 4-0 winners with goals from loanees Ben White and Jack Harrison and two from Helder Costa and Patrick Bamford.

The quality in opposition did then increase as United's pre-season training schedule moved towards more tactical and technical work. A 4-2 win away at Wimbledon saw United concede for the first team in pre-season but goals from Mateusz Bougusz and Jean-Kevin Augustin, plus a brace from Barry Douglas, ensured the pattern of wins for Bielsa's men continued. A home win against League One Southend followed and goals from Stuart Dallas and Kalvin Phillips aided the Whites in an easy 2-0 win. Pre-season was capped off with another 4-2 win, this time against Sunderland. Goals from Matuesz Klich, Helder Costa and a double from Jean-Kevin Augustin completed a successful pre-season for the Whites.

A hard beginning and gentle progression towards developing a high standard of tactical and technical ability by the end of pre-season was Bielsa's goal for the Whites and it's fair to say that has been achieved. One of last season's complaints was that United didn't have enough clinical players that could put away the incredibly high number of chances they created but in this pre-season alone, every player that featured barring right back Robbie Gotts, centre back Liam Cooper, defensive midfielder Alfie McCalmont, central midfielder Adam Forshaw and new man Danilo Pantic - who featured only twice, due to a comeback from injury - scored for the Whites which must surely be a positive, ready for United's start to the season in 7 days.

United's August fixtures as are as follows:

Sunday 4th August - Bristol City (Away) - Skybet Championship
Friday 9th August - Nottingham Forest (Home) - Skybet Championship
Wednesday 14th August - Scunthorpe United (Home) - Carabao Cup First Round
Saturday 17th August - Wigan Athletic (Away) - Skybet Championship
Wednesday 21st August - Brentford (Home) - Skybet Championship
Saturday 24th August - Stoke City (Away) - Skybet Championship
Saturday 31st August - Swansea City (Home) - Skybet Championship​

 

[KP23]

Casilla bid accepted with only 6 days until season begins; what now?

With only 6 days to go until Bielsa's Leeds begin their campaign at Ashton Gate against Bristol City, shocking news came out of Elland Road today.

At midday, the club's official Twitter account broke the news that Spanish keeper Kiko Casilla, only brought in 6 months ago from Real Madrid, was in contract talks over an outgoing transfer. It's not clear whether Casilla had been transfer-listed by the club themselves but all sources indicate that this was not the case; the interest in Casilla was purely organic and came of it's own volition. Ukranian giants Shakhtar Donetsk and Russian side Krasnodar both submitted bids of around £8m for the 32 year old and after much umming and ahhing, United saw fit to accept.

Casilla's exit has been rumoured for weeks. A string of errors towards the end of last season's campaign, culminating in the Spaniard playing a key part in United's self-destruction at home in the play-offs to Derby County, had made him an unpopular figure amongst sections of the fanbase at Elland Road. Speculation of the Whites recruitment team looking for a new number one had been raised throughout the Summer but after Casilla completed pre-season, it looked as if it was forgive and forget time for United's fanbase with the Spaniard ready to take up the starting goalkeeper slot for another season. With Casilla on wages of around £2m a year gross at Elland Road until June 2023, the fee offered does represent value for the Whites in that it gets a risky high earner off of the club's wage bill.

Now, the speculation begins again as United look to chase a replacement for Casilla who can do all that the Spaniard can do - but with fewer mistakes and more reliability. It's early days yet but the noises coming out of Elland Road are that Karl Darlow of Newcastle United is the frontrunner as a replacement with John Ruddy of Wolves, Kieren Westwood of Sheffield Wednesday, Jed Steer of Aston Villa and George Long of Hull City all in the frame to begin the season as United's number one.

With only 6 days until the madness of the footballing season begins again, the Whites have found themselves adding to that madness and now face a race against the clock to handle what should be their final piece of business effectively and efficiently.​