Good Morning. It's Wednesday 22nd December, and here are the latest headlines from Elland Road Viera linked to ER return A transfer window wouldn't be a transfer window without at least half a dozen ex players being linked to an Elland Road reunion. The latest name to crop up is Ronaldo Viera. The former England U21 International penned a five-year deal with Serie A outfit Sampdoria during the 2018 Summer transfer window much to the annoyance of Marcelo Bielsa, but at the time Leeds needed to free up some money, and 7m was too good to turn down. Ronaldo has been plagued by injury over the last eighteen months restricting the 23yo to just four league matches. He hasn't kicked a competitive ball in 293 days and failed a medical test in the Summer that would have seen him join Sheffield Utd. please log in to view this image North Macedonian ace linked to January move Various media sources claim that Leeds may be lining up a bid for attacking midfielder Eljif Elmas. The 22yo currently applies his trade for Napoli. He joined the Italian club from Fenerbahce for €17m plus add-ons. He has 37 caps and 9 goals for North Macedonia. Elmas has been on Leeds radar for a while, and reportedly had a €25m offer turned down for him last Summer. Although Elmas would prove to be an excellent signing, do they have the funds to compete with the likes of Benfica and Borussia Dortmund who are also understood to have shown an interest? please log in to view this image Cresswell could be out for three months Charlie Cresswell faces up to three months on the sidelines, and possible surgery, according to Injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs premierinjuries.com. The 23's Captain sustained a freak shoulder injury prior to the Arsenal game. According to Dinnery, Cresswells injury is far worse than Phillips shoulder injury he sustained just before the Euro's. “Bielsa spoke prior to kick-off and referenced a clavicle injury. Those are two slightly different issues. “It was a training ground issue with a player landing on top of Cresswell. With that injury, it can be treated conservatively. “Kalvin Phillips dislocated his shoulder on the last day of the 2020-21 season and was available for England 14 days later. “But sometimes you may need surgery to address the underlying issues as it is a fairly shallow joint. “If there is a laxity within the connective tissue that holds that arm in place, you can need an operation. “If it’s treated conservatively, he could be out for a matter of weeks. If it’s surgery, it could be two or three months, or possibly even longer. “If it is a non-displaced clavicle injury, conservative treatment again would suffice.“If it’s more serious, again surgery may be required. Then we are talking anywhere from six to eight weeks.” please log in to view this image It was embarrassing, I felt for the players - Merson Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson has slammed Marcelo Bielsa for not changing his tactics against Pep Guardiola's Manchester City last week. The former England winger likened Bielsa to Arsene Wenger during his latter years, and said he felt for the Leeds youngsters. “Marcelo Bielsa’s insistence at playing the same way is reminding me a lot of Arsene Wenger’s latter years at Arsenal. “I remember covering Manchester United versus Arsenal in 2011. Arsenal turned up at Old Trafford with a weakened team, we all said in the Super Sunday studio that Wenger needed to change things and that he couldn’t go out and play as if all his big players were on the pitch. “What did Wenger do? He went out, played the same, and Arsenal got beaten 8-2, I’ll never forget it. This is exactly what I am seeing of Bielsa at Leeds United now. “They went to Manchester City with no players, they played exactly the same way as they usually do, and it was embarrassing, I felt for the players. The manager has got to have another game plan to fall back on when needs must. “Leeds have been absolutely shredded in the absence of some key players, but the manager has to change things around. He has got to accept that, without those players around, the team has to stay solid, get men behind the ball, and make it hard for the opposition to score.” please log in to view this image
Morning all Viera isnt coming back, end of. He was due to be loaned to the Blunts innthe summer but the deal fell through, so he has been loaned to someone never heard of down the Italian leagues and hardly played. So not good enough for Seria A and super unfit having not played much, so not a Bielsaball player. Elmas was mentioned in the summer and we know Orta has looked at him and his mate Alioski speaks highly of him. In the recent Uro Championships Elmas was by far north Macedonia best player? Merson and the rest of knowfuckallpundits. At Leeds the whole club is coached in a certain technique, right from the first team to the U7s. Each member of each team has a particular job to do and be part of a machine. If a first team player is broken a new part from the 23s replaces the broken part to get the machine working again. So in reality asking players to stop doing what they have been coached to do and ask them to play Sunday League hoofball isnt easy. Yes an over simplification of reality but not far from reality. Our problem at times is that our first team player may not be as good as the opposition player and when our broken first team player is replaced by an inferior part from the 23s the machine doesnt work as well…
Injury prone ex player would suit us well As for the bollocks spouted by ex druggie alcho players now pundits **** them. Last season they were creaming their pants over us and now all we hear is crap. Well good I don't want the club to be liked. So I hope Bielsa sticks to his guns gets us out of this mess and we all put two fingers up at those so called experts.
Morning all, Don't read or try and listen to these know nothing ex player turned pundits. Yesterday saw Collymore saying it was time to sack Bielsa. In all fairness though Collymore has had it in for Bielsa since promotion. Yesterday on talkshite Darren Ambrose claimed Newcastle had a better chance of staying up thresh Leeds because they have the money now. He then listed all the players he thinks Newcastle will need to sign in January to make this happen. This was a pundit being paid to basically play football manager on national radio giving suggestions with no basis in real life. Every week Danny Mills gives increasingly wrong opinions to different click bait websites. These people are stealing livings.
Am I the only one who thinks getting new players in January is not going to be the silver bullet? Any new player will takes months to attune himself to the Bielsa method. Yes we need to get a few in but more than that we need our senior players to get back quickly while the new ones learn the new system. I was hoping the PL would be postponed for a few weeks but, hey ho, wishful thinking on my part.
One or two new players will freshen up the dressing room and just that impact will be good while they are bedding in.
If a player as been playing regular football, no need why they should need 6-8 weeks to adjust in my opinion, I know some aren't the brightest but it's their job after all, a couple of weeks training the system should be plenty, I just don't get why he says it takes so long. A fit player, playing their natural position as got to be better than playing one out of position
Good players (example Raphinha) don't need settling in time. It's therefore imperative we identify and sign fully fit and functioning additions to the squad, anything less than that and we may as well not bother. They don't have to be world beating talents but they do need to have something about them which boosts the dressing room and helps us on the pitch.
I've said it before I know but with the situation we've been in most of the season and especially the last 6 weeks, if Orta hasn't got at least 2 signings lined up by now, then what's the point in employing him, ffs, it's his only job.
The thing is...who will want to sell when every club needs larger squads due to covid ? Obviously the only thing that will persuade is cold hard cash and lots off it, not exactly our strong suit in recent years.
Llorente was due to be out for 10 days. Assuming this is due to self-isolation he could be available for Boxing Day as this has been reduced to 7 days.
No mate but it's his sole job to get them, if we pay a couple of mill over the top, it will be nothing compared to what they'll lose if we went down. I keep reading all our competitors are strengthening, there has to be players out there, he needs to find them because we sure as hell need them. On a positive note, looks like Bamford and James could be fit for Boxing Day and Firpo is available again.
Gets Dallas back into midfield, I was thinking. But he'll most likely be RB. Hopefully Struijk should be nearing fitness soon, need him in the centre with Cooper out for a long time
Think it's likely to be more than a couple of million though. To sign someone in the first few days of the window you have to pay the (inflated) asking price, whereas as the window is closing you have both the compromise price plus the selling club knowing it's their last chance of cash for a good few months. This is obviously how we got Raphinha for £17m but if we'd gone in early he would have been £30m ++
Exactly this Afternoon all I fail to understand why they can’t just slot in if they’re good enough either, Bielsa just doesn’t seem to do January windows
Not sure about Raph being £30m at that time tbh but whether we get them at the end or beginning we need them and there should be a list of 6 or so, that contact has been made to get the feelers out. The thing is, we can only wait and see.
This ‘how long to be bielsa fit/ bielsa ready?’ thing. It’s his ideal but he’s chucked players in earlier and it’s not just down to how good they are it’s circumstances. In the same way he likes players to have u23 run outs when returning from fitness but Koch played a straight 90 at the weekend because needs must. re when you sign players. Yes, you’re probably paying asking price on Jan 1. But reality is the deal should already be done now, just needing the stamp. In terms of getting the players bielsa ready… 1st Jan v 31st Jan is a month we don’t really want to waste. The danger of seeing who blinks to get a last minute deal is you risk getting no one. sensible approach would be key target(s): pay what it takes early Jan. Secondary target(s): roll the dice. Cost of being in champ v Prem far exceeds any outlay. I’ve said this every year we’ve had bielsa. Historically my wishes fall on deaf ears
I think you over-estimate the intellectual capacity of your average footballer. They think tactics are little mints… a press is something their mum does to their kit. It’s considered a bonus if they can tie their own shoe-laces. Set plays, when to low block, when to overload the flanks, pressing as a unit? Pleeeeeeeze… You’re having a giraffe.
