Jesse Marsch opens up on ‘fan behaviour’ at Leeds United that led to Thorp Arch meetings
Jesse Marsch has revealed the lengths that he went to try to help Leeds United players at Thorp Arch amid fan frustration.
Leeds decided to sack Marsch in February 2023 after a string of poor results left the Whites scrambling near the bottom of the Premier League.
Marsch was replaced by Javi Garcia, who himself was shown the door at LS11 after just 12 games in charge, as Sam Allardyce’s late appointment wasn’t enough to keep Leeds up.
The Canada boss has opened up on his time at Elland Road, and even spoke about team meetings that were held behind the scenes to combat frustration from Leeds supporters.
Jesse Marsch says Leeds players thanked him for taking ‘ire’ of fans
Marsch‘s time at Leeds started well, but it wasn’t until his first full season that the wheels started to fall off.
Despite starting the 2022-23 campaign with seven points from the first three games of the season, signs of progress under the American began to ebb away.
- Marsch won just 10 points for Leeds from October to February
- He was sacked after a 1-0 away defeat to Nottingham Forest at the start of February in 2023
- Marsch left with a points-per-game record of 1.03
While speaking on The Athletic FC podcast, the 52-year-old detailed how he and the Leeds players suffered from online fan frustration.
Marsch said: “It’s the only job [Leeds] I’ve ever had to speak with the team daily about social media and how to deal with it. We spoke about how to deal with fan behaviour, the strength internally and support for each other on how to deal with it.
“I had players at Leeds telling me that it was the first time that the coach was taking the ire of the fans because it was always directed at them as players, so they kind of said it’s nice having you here, so we can relax a little more.“
It may be a controversial take among the Leeds fanbase, but regardless, with Daniel Farke at the helm, things are different.
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Daniel Farke success puts Marsch comments to shame; here’s why
Leeds are not the only club in England that have a passionate fanbase, and many supporters of other clubs voice their opinions on social media platforms.
Despite a positive run lately, Farke has faced heavy criticism from Leeds fans, but has never once looked unsettled. Why? Because he gets it.
Farke is showing Marsch how things are done and has been progressing with the Whites despite facing financial difficulties and external frustration ever since he arrived.
The German head coach has always stayed true to his words, and one thing is for sure, and that is Leeds are far better off without Marsch.
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