Eddie Gray praised the Leeds United manager for his tactical decisions against Swansea City.
Eddie Gray has hailed Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa for his use of substitutions in the draw on Tuesday night against Swansea City.
The Whites continued their unbeaten start to the season and moved to the top of Championship table, as they fought back from behind twice to earn a point in the 2-2 draw at the Liberty Stadium.
Oli McBurnie put hosts Swansea in front on two separate occasions during the match, but in-form duo Kemar Roofe and then Pablo Hernandez responded with goals of their own.
Bielsa had some big decisions to make during the match, and that started when captain Liam Cooper was injured during the warm-up – which saw youngster Jamie Shackleton come into the starting XI.
The Argentinian boss took off midfielder Kalvin Phillips just 28 minutes into the match for tactical reasons, while Ezgjan Alioski and top scorer Roofe were also taken off in the second-half.
Leeds legend Gray has applauded Bielsa for his braveness to make big decisions and is delighted it came off for him.
“The manager decided that we couldn’t afford to go down to 10 men tonight and took a couple of players off that had been booked,” Gray told LUTV.
“So all in all good decisions. He brought Kemar Roofe off which a lot of people might of thought it’s a bit dangerous to do that when you’re a goal behind, but then Patrick Bamford set up the goal for Pablo Hernandez.”
Leeds did see their 100% winning record come to an end Tuesday night, but will be delighted to move to the top of the league at the early stage of the season – and Bielsa remains unbeaten. A spirited point away at Swansea – themselves among the favourites for promotion – is a further indication that Leeds appear to be back on track.
The Yorkshire giants now turn their attention to Norwich City at the weekend in another difficult fixture.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
