‘There are 50 balls’: BBC pundit shares what Harrison told him about Leeds training

Follow us on Google Discover

Don Hutchison has shared that Jack Harrison told him that Leeds’ murderball can last ‘two and a half hours’, as he told BBC Radio 5 Live Sport.

A number of the Leeds players have spoken about some of the sessions Marcelo Bielsa puts on on a weekly basis, including one, dubbed by the players, ‘murderball’.

It’s no surprise that Leeds players can probably run for another 90 minutes after a game because they go through the toughest part in midweek.

And Hutchison shared what Harrison told him about murderball, as it seems as though Leeds are trying to also cut out their injuries for next season.

“The whole ethos is being one of the fittest sides in the Premier League,” said Hutchison. “If you are going to run your players into the ground as Bielsa does, how do you try and then go injury prevention?

“Not many managers train the way Bielsa trains this team. I was speaking to Jack Harrison last year and I went ‘talk me through this murderball. What is it because I keep hearing about it?’

He said the sessions are ‘we can play an 11 v 11 practise game but we don’t do it for 90 minutes. We do it for close to two hours and half hours’.

“‘And there are 50 balls all the way around the pitch where once the ball goes back out, the ball goes back into play. So, there is no time to rest, so a 90-minute game for the Leeds players seems easy because they are used to training high intensity for two and half hours’.

“So, injury prevention might be don’t run your players as long as you have been.”

From a neutral perspective, Leeds were one of the big entertainers in the Premier League last season and it wouldn’t be a surprise if it’s the same again.

Their all-action style, 100 miles per hour-like efforts and fearless nature make them stand out from most.

But a possible European push will be the next step for Leeds and that might mean becoming a little dull in their ways.

If that happens and Leeds are successful then their fans won’t care too much because it will just show the progression they have made since Bielsa took over.