Samu Saiz hasn’t dazzled since leaving Leeds United, it’s fair to say.
The grass isn’t always greener on the other side in football and that must ring true for former Leeds United star Samu Saiz right now.
The 29-year-old playmaker was a revelation for Leeds during the 2017-18 campaign, scoring nine goals and setting up eight across all competitions following a £3 million move.
But for whatever reason, Saiz looked a totally different player once Marcelo Bielsa took the reins at Elland Road.
For the first half of last season, the Spaniard didn’t score a single goal in 19 Championship appearances and forced a loan move to Getafe for the second half.
It’s about 15 months since Saiz, who is now with Girona, last pulled on a Leeds shirt and, well, he probably regrets leaving.
That’s because the attacker has only started 13 games for Getafe and Girona in that time, scoring twice.
Saiz is arguably one of the most talented players that Victor Orta has ever signed for the West Yorkshire club, so it’s interesting why things didn’t work out once the Argentine came on board.
We know that his sudden decline in England can’t be a lack of ability, based on his first season in the Championship, but we also know that Bielsa subjects his players to arduous fitness to keep them in peak condition throughout the season and it seems possible that Saiz didn’t fancy that side of things.
Still, the fact that every other Leeds player has bought into Bielsa’s methods in a big way is testament to him as a coach and the Whites – who are top of the Championship with a seven-point cushion in the automatic promotion spots – are much better without Saiz than they ever were with him.
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