Phil Hay reveals what people close to Marcelo Bielsa say about rumours of Leeds United return
Marcelo Bielsa would like to manage in the Premier League once again, but a return to Leeds United is not “on the cards,” according to Phil Hay.
The Argentine was a fan favourite during his four years at Elland Road between 2018 and 2022.
The manager gained instant legendary status at the Whites when he helped guide the club back into the Premier League in 2020 after a 16-year absence.
“The Uruguay job’s been on the table for a while and from what I can gather with Bielsa, he likes the idea of it and seems pretty sold on it,” Hay said on The Athletic’s The Phil Hay Show (19m40s). “But at this point, he hasn’t actually committed to it. I saw another report from the press in Uruguay or down in South America on Wednesday saying they were expecting him to sign this week.
“But that’s not the first time that’s been written and it’s not the first time that’s been written and then it hasn’t happened. It does seem as if he’s not rushing into that, which I guess is Bielsa and it was the same at Leeds. It’s never a case of grabbing the job as soon as it drops through the letterbox.
“We also know that he would like to come back to England. He would like a club job, he would like a Premier League job, which is why there were talks with Bournemouth back in November and talks with Everton in January. Neither came to anything but it isn’t a secret amongst those relatively close to him and people around him that he would come back here to England.
“But in terms of Leeds, I haven’t been told that’s on the cards. It seems pointless discussing it until that grows legs because all that’s going to happen is a spawn of a million blog posts saying, ‘this is what he said on his podcast’. And the honest answer is, I don’t know.”
Unwanted distraction
A Bielsa return to Elland Road would surely be welcomed with open arms by the majority of Leeds supporters given what he did at the club and what he means to everyone associated with it.
But right now Leeds don’t need such speculation playing on their minds, with the Whites facing the very real threat of Premier League relegation.
With just three matches remaining, Leeds sit 19th in the table, two points away from safety.
The West Yorkshire outfit have another iconic manager in Sam Allardyce in the dugout, and while he has little to no connection with the fans, it simply doesn’t matter, with points on the board the only thing anyone at Leeds cares about right now.
That said, the supporters will undoubtedly be in full voice yet again when Newcastle visit Elland Road on Saturday (13 May), with Whites fans constantly backing their team in a season where they have not been shown the same respect from those on the pitch.
In other Leeds United news, Allardyce has confirmed the Whites will be without four first-team players for the upcoming clash with Newcastle.