Speaking on The Athletic Football Podcast, Phil Hay has shared what he knows about Leeds’ succession plan once Marcelo Bielsa eventually leaves the club.
The Argentine is now 66 years old, and after four years at Leeds, there’s plenty of speculation around whether or not he’ll stay on for a fifth season at Elland Road.
The Telegraph reported last week that Leeds have three names on their shortlist to replace Bielsa, and while Hay didn’t corroborate that story, he says that they do want to bring in a manager who plays in a similar style so that they don’t undo all of the good work Bielsa has done straight away.
What’s been said?
Hay responded when asked if there is a succession plan for Bielsa at Leeds.
“Yes, there is in a sense that they know the direction they want to go in as and when he leaves. They don’t want to decimate the plan, they have academy teams that play in much the same way as the first-team, so they want some transitional system where they get a coach who picks up the best aspects of Bielsa’s football and works with them. They do keep shortlists of potential coaches because Bielsa is only ever on a 12-month deal,” Hay said.
Hard to find
Leeds want a manager who will play a similar style to Marcelo Bielsa, but that type of gaffer is not easy to find.
Bielsa is one of a kind in a number of ways, and while many have tried to emulate his style, nobody has really come close to getting their team playing in this way.
It will certainly be interesting to see who Leeds go for once Bielsa’s race is run at Elland Road.
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