According to Sky Sports, Leeds United are in advanced talks to appoint former Argentina and Chile manager Marcelo Bielsa as Paul Heckingbottom’s successor.
The 40-year-old was sacked by the Yorkshire outfit last week after winning just four of his 16 Championship matches at the helm, and it is looking more and more likely that he will be replaced by the experienced 62-year-old, who has become renowned for his use of an elaborate 3-3-3-1 formation during his managerial career.
The Argentine boss is currently unemployed having been sacked by Ligue 1 outfit Lille in November following a poor start to the 2017/18 campaign having only taken charge last summer, and his arrival would certainly excite the fans, who believe the club is on the verge of announcing their first signing following a big development.
He has managed the likes of them, Athletic Bilbao and Marseille on the domestic front – as well as his time on the international stage – and while he may potentially be dropping into the second tier in England, he will know individuals from his time at those clubs that would be a great fit at Elland Road as the Whites look to finally mount a serious promotion push and return to the Premier League next season.
Here are three players with Bielsa connections that would be perfect for Leeds…
The French defensive midfielder – who can also play as a centre-back – came through the Marseille academy and was handed his first-team debut for the club by Bielsa on the opening day of the 2014/15 campaign having impressed his manager during pre-season.
Sparagna made four appearances that year and was involved in and around the first team, but that changed when Bielsa left in 2015 and the 23-year-old now finds himself at Portuguese outfit Boavista.
With strengthening potentially needed at both centre-back and in central midfield this summer, Bielsa should look to bring the Frenchman to Elland Road, and he would be an upgrade on Kalvin Phillips in the middle of the park.
One of Leeds’ – and Bielsa’s – priorities this summer will be to bring a new centre-forward to Elland Road, given they are still yet to effectively replace Chris Wood following his departure to Burnley last year.
The likes of Pierre-Michel Lasogga, Pawel Cibicki and Caleb Ekuban came in but failed to fill the void, and the 62-year-old Argentine may well have his eyes on Tottenham Hotspur centre-forward Llorente if he does get the Whites job.
Bielsa worked with the 6ft 5in striker during the 2011/12 season at Athletic Bilbao when he netted 29 goals in 53 appearances in all competitions – although he was frozen out by the club the following campaign following a contract issue – and seeing as he is out of favour at Spurs he may well be ready to launch an ambitious move to link up with him once again.
Bielsa was responsible for bringing Aduriz back to Athletic Bilbao from Valencia in 2012, and it proved to be a move that worked out for both parties as he scored 18 goals in 44 appearances in all competition in his first season.
While the Argentine boss left the La Liga club, the centre-forward has remained there since and even though he is now 37 years of age, the goals certainly haven’t dried up – he ended the 2017/18 campaign with 20 goals in 48 outings in total.
Given his age and the fact that he only has one year remaining on his contract, Bielsa may feel that the Spaniard could be tempted by one last challenge in his career, and he would love to bring the veteran attacker to Elland Road given he has all of the attributes to be a success in the Championship.
Do you agree, Leeds fans? Let us know below.
