Noel Whelan has heralded the ‘masterstroke’ that Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa pulled on Thursday night.
The Elland Road recorded their first win of the season by thumping Stoke City 5-0 in West Yorkshire.
In doing so, Leeds re-established their six-point cushion in the automatic promotion places and with only four games to go, they look like they’re going back to the Premier League after a 16-year absence.
Bielsa’s side were only leading 1-0 at the break, courtesy of a Mateusz Klich penalty, but the Argentine tactician swapped Tyler Roberts for Pablo Hernandez – who scored United’s fourth of the night – in what proved to be an inspired decision from the head coach.
Here’s now the club’s former hitman Whelan reacted to the substitution:
He told BBC West Yorkshire Sport: “He [Bielsa] spotted when to make the changes.
“The penalty just before the break, that was a signal to say, ‘Right, now we can bring Pablo on. He’s the one who’s going to mastermind the second half.’ It’s just a masterstroke by the manager.”
Bielsa is quite a famed tactician and one who has disciples in the likes of Mauricio Pochettino and Pep Guardiola.
And it’ll be so intriguing to see how the Leeds boss fares against some of England’s elite – including Guardiola at Manchester City – next season, providing they secure promotion.
They continue their march toward the Premier League with a trip to Swansea City on Sunday.
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