Bielsa says Leeds player’s deserved to start more this season, he’s been really unlucky

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Marcelo Bielsa has suggested to Leeds Live that Ian Poveda actually deserves to have played more for Leeds United this season.

Poveda has made just 11 Premier League appearances for Leeds this term, and he is still yet to start a match.

The young winger has been solely used as an impact substitute, despite showing flashes of real quality when introduced.

And Bielsa actually admits that Poveda is unlucky not to have featured more often.

“He hasn’t had the luck of Tyler where he’s been able to play many games,” Bielsa said.

“For any player to play, they have to show they are in better conditions to play than the player currently occupying the position.

“Or that there is spaces in the team, for reasons that are not to do with performance.

“In this sense, Poveda hasn’t had many opportunities.

“Because Raphinha and Harrison have played more.

“And when either of those two have been absent, Helder Costa has played.

“But he is a player with a great capacity to unbalance. He is a player who has dribbling skills that are difficult to decipher.

“But like I was saying about Tyler, he needs to create these attempts into something that impacts the game. And there’s also a question that you have to be able to play to gain conclusions in this sense and he’s had very few minutes to show these conditions, not because he doesn’t deserve them but because I’ve taken decisions that have placed him behind Raphinha and Harrison.

“But in some way he deserves more minutes due to the quality that he has.”

Poveda is still only 21 so time is on his side as he looks to make a breakthrough at Leeds.

However, Victor Orta and Bielsa may well target another attacking option in the summer, which could leave Poveda’s chances even more limited.

If a new winger does come in it will be interesting to see Leeds’ plan of action with Poveda.

Although they are unlikely to offload a youngster of such promise on a permanent deal, a move to a club where he could play regularly would surely be a possibility.