Page 2 - We Are Premier League: LUFC Promotion YEP Special

30 I YORKSHIREEVENINGPOST www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk Saturday.July25,2020
WE ARE PREMIER LEAGUE: LUFC SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT
MAKING TIME: Marcelo Bielsa gives young Leeds fan Riley Ross a
hug, just one example of the Leeds coach’s ability to connect with fans.
DEAR PREMIER League, forget
everything you think you know
about Leeds United.
While there has rightfully been plenty to admire on the pitch from Leeds United
in the two years since Marcelo Bielsa arrived at the club, the club has also
Whateverpreconceived madeenormousstridesoffthepitch,too,placingthemselvesintheheartofthe
ideas you might have about this
football team, perhaps based
on a decades-old reputation,
previous deeds or a hatred
you've never really been able to
fully explain, put them to one
side.
The team and the head coach
you will soon be welcoming to
the finest stadia in the country
are very good at football, but
they're equally good at being
human.
When he arrived two
years ago, Marcelo Bielsa
inherited a mid-table squad
and transformed Lhem into
champions, with tactics
and physical demands that
made them a nightmare for
opposition teams.
Not only would they outplay
their rivals, Leeds outran them
and like a dog with a bone,
persisted and persisted until
they had what they wanted,
After games, Bielsa would
community they recognise as vital to their success. Graham Smyth reports.
Or follow us on twitter
@LUSCExec
f facebook.com/groups/leedsunitedsupportersclub
almost always spare a smile and
a kind word for his opposition
manager, before telling the
press the league table was
Leeds, and there were some
whoppers. It was never about
him.
He plays down a manager’s
impact during a game,
preferring to highlight
unfairly representing
the ability ofthat
managerandhis
team.
There were
never any
mind games,
no attempts
to pile the
pressure on
rivals.
He never
criticised
a referee.
There were
no knowing
smiles, winks
or invitations forjournalists
to draw their own conclusions
on decisions that unfairly cost
Bielsa is a demanding man.
Chiefexecutive Angus Kinnear
has highlighted that as a key
factor in the club's ability to
gain Category One status for
their Thorp Arch academy.
theworkofhis Bielsawantedimprovements
r-
MARCELO BIELSA: When
people reach out to the Leeds
coach, he always reciprocates.
players.
Even when
the FIFA Fair
Play award was
bestowed on
the Argentine,
he credited
his family, his
first club Newell's
Old Boys, his
coaching staff,
his captain Liam
Cooper and the
Leeds fans for
accepting the decision to give
Aston Villa a goal,
There is little doubt that
and because the club
acquiesced, the club benefitted.
Bielsa is also a warm and
generous man. Selfies are never
too much trouble, requests
always met writh the same polite
smile. He might be a hero to
the person holding the camera
phone, but he is genuinely
touched to be held in such high
esteem.
When he returned to his
modest flat in Wetherby on
Friday, promotion sealed, he
told a group ofwell wishers
he wasn’t expecting such
a welcome and patiently.
Leeds United Supporters Club
ALWAYS LEEDS
ALWAYS LOYAL
Champion fans following a Champion Club
Since our formation on the same day as Leeds United A.F.C. we have been proud
of our association with the club and our ability to get fans to games since 1919.
We have an ever increasing fan base which includes UK and Irish Branches as well
as International Branches. We are delighted to be sponsors of Kalvin Phillips and
our President is World Boxing Champion, Josh Warrington.
Interested in joining us for the Premier League season or
perhaps starting a new Branch in your area?
Contact us at: ileedsunitedsupportersclub.org.uk