Dean Smith has lauded the job Marcelo Bielsa has done at Leeds United ahead of their clash against Aston Villa on Friday night.
Leeds earned promotion to the Premier League in the summer after 16 years and Smith shared that the man behind their rise is ‘rightly getting the plaudits’, as posted by Villa’s official Twitter account.
Smith knows full well what it’s like trying to earn promotion because he did just that via the play-offs the season before Bielsa guided his own team to the Championship title.
It is going to be some battle from the two on Friday night and it’s quite clear that Smith is a huge fan and has been impressed by his opposite number.
“I’ve got total admiration and respect for him,” Smith said. “What his team have done.
“He’s improved the players at that football club and he’s rightly getting the plaudits.”
Both managers have done stellar jobs at clubs who have been sleeping giants in the English game for far too long now.
Whilst Villa spent three seasons in the Championship, it was nothing compared to what Leeds have gone through, so it could be argued that Bielsa did the better and tougher job of the two.
Either way, both teams are now filled with young, vibrant and energetic talents, with two attack-minded coaches looking nowhere but forward and planning to break the chain that is being built at the top of the Premier League table.
Villa go into Friday’s game having won all four matches and they can move top with a victory, whilst Leeds will be hoping to use positive memories from the last time they were in the West Midlands and they came from 2-0 down to secure a very late 3-2 victory.
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