Marcelo Bielsa has told Leeds Live that he believes Leeds United’s Luke Ayling and Stuart Dallas have been their most consistent players this season.
Ayling gave away a penalty last night as Leeds lost 2-0 to West Ham.
But Bielsa was keen not to be too critical of the right-back, as he feels that the Leeds defender has generally been very good this term.
Indeed, Bielsa claims that he is the one to blame for Leeds conceding so many goals – as he feels his players have actually had very good campaigns.
“Meslier had a good season, Ayling and Dallas our most consistent players, all of those who have played as centre-backs, all players who have shone,” he said.
“The answer I give you opens up another analysis because having defenders who have played so well, you wonder why we concede so many. In this case, there’s a responsibility from myself because if you have good footballers to recover the ball and the team concedes, inadvertently the coach is involved.”
Ayling may have been excellent in general this term, but he struggled last night.
Ayling gave away a penalty early on, when he dangled a leg and made contact with Jesse Lingard, and he never truly looked comfortable.
The 29-year-old has been vital to Leeds this season though, as his ability to cover at both right-back and centre-back has been precious.
Leeds’ defeat to West Ham last night means that they sit in 11th place in the Premier League table, which still represents a very respectable position in their first season back in the top flight.
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