Marcelo Bielsa’s ability to improve footballers under his wing as players on the pitch is almost undisputed.
Leeds United is the latest club to underline and illustrate what he is able to do. The likes of Liam Cooper, Kalvin Phillips and Luke Ayling are perfect examples.
An underestimated by-product of Bielsa’s tutelage would undoubtedly be a player’s increased potential to coach future generations themselves.
Just today, Tyler Roberts told the BBC how Bielsa had got him thinking about football on an entirely different level. He will not be alone in that.
Despite the distance Bielsa tries to keep between himself and the squad, there will be so much they take from him on a deeper level, which, surely, would then be channelled into their own coaching.
Liam Cooper has already launched his own academy in the city while Adam Forshaw has openly admitted in the past he hopes to go into management after retirement.
In August last year, Forshaw said: “I’m learning so much, I’ve always said it. He makes me feel like I want to be a manager when I finish because he’s widened my horizons massively.
“Day-to-day, the standards, the professionalism, even then to the coaching methods, day-to-day and you see it comes to fruition on a Saturday. I’m loving it.”
He added: “I hadn’t to be honest (considered management). As you say, I’m not too old yet so.
“Yeah, I’ve just been noting things down, key points of what I’m learning from him. With his vast appearance, I think I’d be silly not to.”
Before the Manchester City match at the start of the month, Bielsa was asked about the important traits which make players good managers.
There was also a request for which of the current United crop he felt stood out as management material.
“I have an idea of the players that apart from playing also think about the game,” he said. “It's not indispensable to think about the game.
“You can play well without thinking. There are lots of footballers who make decisions on the pitch they can’t explain, which are the correct decisions and you have to separate this decision making with execution because deciding to do something doesn't mean you are going to do it well, but it does facilitate it.
“There are also players that are of such high quality they resolve situations just on their talent alone.
“Players who end up as managers are usually the ones who think about what they are going to do.
“And also they think about the game, not just what they have to do, but in a collective manner.
“Players usually don't like to be mentioned as future managers because it would suggest they are close to the end of their playing career, so I prefer not to comment.”
