Marcelo Bielsa has elaborated on his decision to substitute Pascal Struijk just 21 minutes into Leeds United’s match against Aston Villa.
Never one to shy away from making bold calls, the 21-year-old Dutchman was brought off by Bielsa after receiving an early booking for a foul on Villa talisman Jack Grealish.
Struijk, in only the fourth senior start of his Leeds career, looked forlorn when he saw his number up on the substitution board, made to exit the field and walk the long way around the Villa Park pitch back to the dugout.
Grealish set a new Premier League record for fouls drawn last season, which is likely to have factored into Bielsa’s thinking as he looked to avoid his team being reduced to ten men - as he explained post-match.
"Pascal picked up an early yellow card and after this yellow card he had another foul which was a dangerous one," Bielsa told reporters.
"There was a lot of mobility in the midfield, it was very dynamic and it was very easy for anyone to make a challenge out of time so as a result I was worried and made the substitution."
The ruthless decision brought to mind how he dealt with Kalvin Phillips, who faced a steep learning curve to adapt to the defensive midfielder role and was hooked early more than once in the early months of Bielsa’s tenure.
The Argentinian provided extra insight into how he subsequently dealt with the United starlet in the pre-match press conference ahead of Monday evening’s match at home to Leicester City.
“He reacted in a normal manner,” Bielsa responded when asked about how he approached Struijk after the match.
“The explanation, of course, I gave to him and to the whole team.”
Bielsa did not give anything away as to whether Struijk will continue to deputise for the injured Phillips when Leeds face Leicester on Monday.
Fellow academy player Jamie Shackleton, who replaced Struijk at Villa Park, represents another option for Bielsa
