Tony Pulis has warned Leeds United that they will get punished and caught out on the counter-attack this season because of the number of bodies they throw forward.
During Pulis’ time in the Championship, he would have come up against ‘first class’ Bielsa when he was at Middlesbrough, as he labelled the world-renowned coach as an ‘interesting’ character, as he told Sky Sports News (19/09/20 at 2:50 pm)
In their opening two Premier League matches, Leeds have scored seven goals, conceded the same amount and picked up their first win of the campaign over the weekend against Fulham.
Pulis, whose teams are known for their defensive structure and rigid nature, shared his thoughts on Bielsa as an individual but warned that they could face problems at the back.
“He’s an interesting character,” Pulis told Sky Sports. “I sat with him at Elland Road and then he came into our room at Boro. He’s interesting. He’s unique.
“The system he plays and the style he plays is absolutely first class and he believes in it. They will surprise a lot of teams.
“The difference is that the Premier League is a lot, lot sharper in the turnover than what the Championship is. There will be a lot of occasions where Leeds will get caught, where they are throwing bodies forward and people counter-attack them.
“That’s one thing they have to be careful of [the number of chances they concede], and from set-plays aswell. We found that they were a little loose off set-plays and in the Premiership, they will punish you if you’re not good at the basics. They will punish you.”
Leeds United’s first six fixtures of 2020/21
- Liverpool (A)
September 12
- Fulham (H)
September 19
- Sheffield United (A)
September 26
- Manchester City (H)
October 3
- Wolves (H)
October 17
- Aston Villa (A)
October 24
You couldn’t have two different coaching brains than the 100 miles per hour, overly aggressive and positively stubborn, Bielsa.
And the more methodical, stick to the speed limit, defensively structured, Pulis.
It will be interesting to see how Bielsa fares in England’s top-flight and whether he’ll ask his players to be less in the face of their opponents if they cannot stop leaking the goals.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
