Here is your Leeds United morning digest for Sunday, November 29.
Bielsa praises Raphinha
New signing Raphinha scored his first Leeds goal to secure a hard-earned 1-0 victory over Everton on Saturday evening. In his post-match press conference, Marcelo Bielsa was asked about the £17million signing, who has started to forge a role for himself in the starting XI.
He said: “He's a player who has adapted very quickly to the Premier League. Victor Orta who chose him and brought him here had identified that he had the necessary qualities to adapt to the Premier League.
“He's a player who can unbalance, who's potent, who moves all around the pitch and has the capacity to unbalance from everywhere.”
Bielsa also praised his defenders in containing James Rodriguez. “James is a player who if he manages turn, he is very good at assisting the number nine and Richarlison,” he added.
“We made a conscious effort to have someone close to him throughout so that he was not able to do the thing he likes to do the most, which is to turn and send those passes in behind. And despite the efforts of Dallas, Cooper and Klich, he was a player who was very difficult to neutralise.”
You can read every word from Bielsa’s post-match press conference here .
Micah Richards defends Marcelo Bielsa nomination
Micah Richards has defended the nomination of Bielsa in the Men’s Coach of the Year category in FIFA’s The Best Awards.
Bielsa was nominated for guiding Leeds to promotion from the Championship. Treble winner Hansi Flick of Bayern Munich was also nominated, as was Sevilla’s Julen Lopetegui, who won the Europa League, and Jurgen Klopp and Zinedine Zidane, who won the English and Spanish leagues respectively.
Some criticised Bielsa’s inclusion, but Richards has leapt to the Argentinian’s defence.
“Many will wonder why Bielsa is in the running having ‘only’ won the Championship,” he wrote in the Daily Mail . “For the people of Leeds, though, it doesn’t matter whether he comes first or fifth in that list. What he has given them is worth more than any accolade.
“The very fact he is being discussed in the same breath as the other managers shows, firstly, what reputation he carries and, secondly, that Leeds are back on the map.
“I live in Harrogate and spend a lot of time in Leeds and I know the depth of feeling towards him in the area. Leeds is a city known for football and the area has a team to be proud of once again. You cannot underestimate the importance of that during what has been a difficult year.”
Chelsea accused of exploiting fans in Leeds clash
Leeds’ trip to Chelsea next weekend will see their first game with fans in the stands since the first lockdown in March. London has been named in Tier 2, meaning 2,000 supporters can attend Leeds’ Premier League match against Chelsea next Saturday evening.
However, Chelsea have been accused of exploiting supporters by pricing tickets at £75 in the West Stand lower tier and £40 in the Shed End lower tier.
The higher price was questioned by the Chelsea Supporters’ Trust in a forceful statement. “The CST is extremely disappointed with the CFC announcement regarding the return of supporters to Stamford Bridge,” a statement read. “Throughout all discussions we have had with the club, the consensus was that tickets would be sold on 50% loyalty points and 50% on a first-come, first-served basis with, potentially, a one-price ticket for any part of the stadium.
“The club, in their wisdom, have decided to charge an eye-watering £75 for the majority of sold tickets. The CST is also appalled to learn that this price is the highest that any PL club is charging for tickets. At a time of financial uncertainty, for CFC to charge supporters £75 for a match ticket, the CST believe that this is clear exploitation of supporter loyalty.
“The CST have expressed our disappointment and anger to the club representatives in a phone meeting this morning and will continue to push for a more appropriate scheme in the upcoming months.”
