Leeds United fans are living in a Marcelo Bielsa wonderland.
The Argentine coach helped the club return to the Premier League after sixteen years away, and complete what has been a wild ride under Bielsa.
The 65-year-old is known for his intensity, both on and off the pitch, and it has at times seen some speculation about how long he will remain at Elland Road.
“Well, I hope he can stay with us for a long time, but we like to decide year by year because obviously as I said in another interview he’s not a young manager, he’s 65 and his family, his wife is often in Argentina,” Leeds owner Andrea Radrizzani said this week.
“Hopefully he can stay longer – 60 is the new 40 these days! If not, I think what he’s building is the foundation for a proper club.”
Discussion surrounding Bielsa’s future is not an especially pressing concern for Leeds at a time when they are focusing on maintaining an impressive start to life back in the Premier League, but the news that Manchester United are interested in Mauricio Pochettino does at least potentially scupper the idea of a Bielsa disciple succeeding his mentor at Elland Road.
It may sound like a lofty ambition for the Whites to hire Pochettino, but there is no denying he’d be the dream successor to Bielsa. The pair first met when Pochettino was just a boy.
“One night, at one in the morning, he came to my house, knocked on the door and wanted to see a 13-year-old boy,” Pochettino told ESPN Brasil’s Natali Gedra.
“He tried to convince my parents to let me travel 200km, to Rosario, which was the distance from my city, Murphy. He wanted to see my legs! At this time of the morning, he would have to be a little… he had to make my parents dream. Then he said: ‘these legs look like those of a very good player’. That was a good lie, no bad intentions.”
The pair subsequently worked together at both club and international level, and have even faced off as managers, when Pochettino was at Espanyol.
“For me, he’s a person I will always admire. People call him ‘El Loco Bielsa’, but for me, he is not crazy at all,” he added.
“For me, he’s a genius. A person with [so much] charisma and a personality very different from us normal coaches, and that’s what makes him special.”
That admiration is underpinned by an appreciation for how Bielsa plays the game. Pochettino gave a thorough examination of Bielsa’s methods while appearing on Monday Night Football this week, and it’s clear his own vision aligns well with Bielsa.
Pochettino’s own willingness to press opponents was evident at Southampton and Tottenham, and while his style is not as aggressive, or man-to-man-orientated as Bielsa’s, it would make for a softer transition than other managers.
“It is very difficult for me to be objective when it comes to Marcelo because with Jorge Griffa and Marcelo Bielsa, they are like my two footballing fathers and I am so grateful to them,” he said.
There is no harm in Leeds being proactive in preparing for Bielsa’s eventual departure, especially given how important it is they choose the right successor. A drastic departure tactically could set the club back considerably, especially given how much time these players have spent learning the detail behind Bielsa’s system.
Pochettino would have, on paper at least, been the ideal successor in that regard. A tactical disciple, it would have represented an ambitious move by the club as they look to cement their status as a Premier League club.
Any idea of him being the long-term replacement for Bielsa would be in tatters if he does join Leeds' bitter rivals, but fingers crossed Bielsa has informed his protege how great it is to be in charge at Elland Road in the hope he one day follows him there.
