The Whites of Marcelo Bielsa are hoping to earn promotion from the Championship and bring Premier League football to Elland Road.
NBC Sports Group pundit Robbie Earle has given his thoughts on Leeds United’s hopes of promotion from the Championship, outlining that both the Whites’ young side and manager Marcelo Bielsa can draw on the experience from the season just gone (Stoke Sentinel).
However, the former Port Vale, Wimbledon and Jamaica midfielder also commented on the theory about Bielsa’s “demanding” style of play leading to player burnout in the latter stages of the season as well as the “huge pressure” on the club to succeed.
Leeds began brightly last season and were in the top two for much of the campaign but their form dropped somewhat since the turn of the year and the three-horse race for the top two unfortunately saw the Elland Road side miss out on automatic and have to settle for the playoffs.
There is optimism amongst much of the fanbase with Bielsa on board for 2019-20 and Earle noted that they’re the “bookies favourites” given how close they came to getting the job done last season.
“Their young side will have the experience of last year to draw on, as will Marcelo Bielsa,” Earle wrote in the Stoke Sentinel. “He did superbly in his first season at Elland Road but one of the theories about his style of play is it’s so demanding that players are burned out in the final stages of the season.
“The other factor for Leeds is they are such a big club in the Championship that there is always huge pressure on them. I almost feel as though they have to make it into the top two because otherwise the pressure would be so great on them in the playoffs, particularly after they just missed out last season.”
Leeds will find out on Thursday morning who they face first in the Championship and when they will lock horns with the other teams in the division, with the fixture lists set to be revealed.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
