Well, Leeds United didn’t enjoy a fairytale start to life under Jesse Marsch.
The American coach suffered a 1-0 defeat away to Leicester City on his first Premier League encounter as Leeds boss since replacing Marcelo Bielsa earlier this week.
However, there was plenty for Marsch to be proud of – and he certainly showed it.
Straight after the game, the former Red Bull Leipzig manager orgnaised a huddle in the middle of the pitch in an attempt to keep up morale despite the defeat.
However, Andy Townsend isn’t convinced that it was necessary, suggesting that it should’ve been saved for the dressing room.
He told Optus Sport: “It might be something stateside and it’s natural. You just have to be careful with things like that. You can do it inside. You can do it in the dressing room. That sort of stuff. Call me a cynical old pro but I don’t get that and I think it’s slightly unnecessary.”
It did, from the outside, look a little unconventional and performative.
As Townsend said, this is what the dressing room is for, so to rally the troops in front of the television cameras after the game following a defeat was a tad strange.
However, you could also argue that actually, it was harmless and there was nothing wrong with a little public show of support.
The truth is that Marsch still has to sell himself to these Leeds players and if he feels like gestures such as this help him then that has to be respected.
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