Joe Gelhardt weighs in on Leeds United training amid Jesse Marsch’s Marcelo Bielsa comments
Leeds United are still an “intense and aggressive” team according to Joe Gelhardt, despite Jesse Marsch’s comments about Marcelo Bielsa’s methods.
The American told talkSPORT this week that the injury issues that have plagued the Whites squad this season were a result of the players being “overtrained” under his predecessor, leaving them “physically, mentally, psychologically, emotionally” unable to recover properly.
The Athletic‘s Phil Hay reported last week that Marsch has made it a priority to de-stress the players, using methods such as making Thursdays gentle ahead of games, but teenage striker Gelhardt is clear that it doesn’t mean they are regressing physically.
He said in the Yorkshire Post: “Training’s still intense and we still play an intense and aggressive style of play.
“We work on pressing and the nutritionist makes sure we’re eating right and getting good food into us. We keep on top of our weight still.”
The teenager himself hasn’t had much luck in recent weeks, and said: “I haven’t had much exposure to minutes. I have had a few knocks, I tried to get minutes with the 23s and I got injured.
“I am just going through a bit of a rough spell so hopefully I can get through that and get as many minutes as possible because I love playing 23s football as much as first team.
“I just like getting minutes and I just want to get fit and play as much as possible.”
Smarter not harder
Nobody can deny what Bielsa did in his time at Thorp Arch, and assuming they can remain there this season he will always be credited with returning the club back to the top.
But his devotion to his methods may have simply led to a blindness to the downsides in certain situations.
It could have just been bad luck that saw the huge number of injury issues this season, because his focus on physical exertion would inevitably then come under the microscope.
The new manager’s way of working will obviously be a relief after nearly four years of the full-throttle way of life under Bielsa.
But as Gelhardt suggests, that doesn’t have to mean a drop off in fitness if it can be maintained in a more considered fashion.
It hasn’t so far benefited the 19-year-old himself though, who looked set to assume Patrick Bamford’s mantle once the senior man was once again ruled out.
But after his own dramatic winner against Norwich, he’s been very unlucky that fitness issues have prevented him kicking on.
Perhaps that proves that nothing can avoid bad luck with injuries whatever the training methods, but the squad does appear to have taken to Marsch’s ways so far.
In other Leeds United news, a key first-team player is “determined” to commit their future to the club in the next six weeks amid transfer speculation.