Appointing a sports psychologist to try and improve Leeds United's recent poor form would likely be a futile act, according to a leading practitioner.
Last week Whites midfielder Mateusz Klich, 29, admitted the club doesn’t employ a sports psychologist, amid a run of for from the club.
Instead they rely on the vast experience of head coach Marcelo Bielsa for their mental health tactics.
That’s despite a run of form that has seen Leeds blow an 11 point gap to the third placed club in the Championship.
And it’s also despite the fact that Leeds were shoe-ins for automatic promotion last season, only to falter during the run-in.
But now Simon Kawycz, lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology at Liverpool Hope University, has warned recruiting a sports psychologist at this stage of the season may not get the desired results.
He said: “The problem with bringing-in a sports psychologist when a collective problem is identified late into a season, is that it’s potentially the wrong approach, in my opinion.
“If you’re going to employ sports psychology and use it effectively, it should be there from the very start of the season - even when things are going well.
“When problems do then occur - if there’s a dip in performance or if athletes face challenges - then the support mechanisms are already in place and there’s existing knowledge of how to deal with these types of issues.”
Working with an individual player - such as a misfiring striker - is also tricky when there’s not an underlying culture of sports psychology already in place.
Simon, who has worked with England Rugby Football Union, added: “Sports psychologists can go in mid-way through a season and help in certain aspects related to performance and particularly when it comes to wellbeing issues.
“But sports psychology is not a sticking plaster.
“If you’re bringing in a psychologist because you’re in a slump or because you’ve lost a number of games and you’re trying to turn your season around, then it may be hard for a psychologist to have a real impact in a short space of time.
“This is not to say that it is not possible but the long term benefits may not be fully realised.
“It’s not just for those that are ‘weak’ or perceived to have a problem, either.
“My opinion is that Leeds United should already have a sport psychologist, or access to sports psychology support, and that should be in place from preseason all the way through the good times and the bad.
“And there are clubs out there who do have this support mechanism in place and who employ sports psychologists on either a full time or consultancy basis.”
Simon, an Accredited Insights Discovery Practitioner, says there’s another issue when it comes to player wellbeing - and that’s criticism from fans.
He added: “From the fans point of view, players represent them as a group - and if they’re perceived to not be performing - for the good of the team and representing who and what the team are about - then they may start to be seen or viewed as not ‘one of us’.
“This is when fans may push against certain players. This can have a negative impact on a players ability to perform effectively.
“For me, criticising players - either on the pitch or through social media - is rarely a positive thing in terms of their performance and the outcome for the team.
“Players are going to be more concerned with not making a mistake than doing what needs to be done to win matches.
“And if they’re afraid to even have a go at doing something different or take a risk in the pursuit of success for fear of the fans turning on them, that’s going to inhibit the chances of success further.
“You’ll get passes sideways or backwards, rather than players taking a chance and going forward, because the player will ultimately seek to avoid scrutiny or make mistakes.”
Leeds have the opportunity to deliver a blow to one of their direct rivals on Tuesday night, when they make the trip to west London to take on Brentford.
