Bielsa is a world class manager, and he has his system that delivers incredibly exciting, breath taking football ... this means Leeds always have a chance, regardless of who their opponents are teams like Burnley, Norwich and Watford really struggle to be dynamic, and they have to fight hard for anything they can get ... their problem is that they are now in have to win territory, draws simply aren't good enough for them anymore, and the question they face is about their capability to suddenly become good attacking teams ... it's not a mentality or culture you can instantly develop Leeds are by nature an attacking beast, flying at opponents from all angles at top speed, and not sporadically but for 90 minutes ... the players know where to go, understand the runs others are making, and they're comfortable picking up the ball anywhere on the pitch ... this mentality means Leeds are always dangerous, an opponent to be respected and feared opposition managers know that if their players don't match Leeds stride for stride, if they don't stand up to the physical challenge and lose their man for just a second, they will be in trouble there was lots of talk about the brilliance of Coutinho and Ramsey against Leeds, but in truth it was really about the Villa goals ... what more did Coutinho contribute? where was Ramsey when Rodrigo set up the first two goals? and also note that Leeds broke Coutinho with their constant running, forcing him to have to work a lot harder than he wanted to ... Coutinho couldn't last the pace, and he couldn't control the game ... don't misunderstand Bielsa Ball, it's a thing of murderous beauty when Leeds went to Stamford Bridge with a badly depleted team, we saw a superb fighting display where they matched Chelsea stride for stride, and would have won were it not for two blatant dives that VAR decided were nailed on penalties ... Chelsea was the game where you knew right away that Leeds were not going to be relegation candidates but rather a team pushing on towards the top half of the table yes, Citeh and Arsenal were tough losses, but the Citeh game was hot on the heels of a huge effort at Chelsea, and being robbed like that in the last seconds must have taken a big mental toll on the young team ... against Arsenal there were signs of a good team getting ready to explode into action Burnley and West Ham continued the upward trend, and even against Newcastle we saw Leeds dominating and running Toon ragged, just lacking the killer blow Villa saw Bielsa Ball back in full flow, with a fit Rodrigo pulling Villa all over the place and playing the ten role to perfection ... the Brazilian is an immense talent, and he is part of the reason Leeds will kick on now for the next 16 games, which leads nicely into the key point Leeds' season starts now! there is a lot to be excited about, a lot to look forward to and I've got a feeling we are going to be in for a stack of intoxicating, chaotic beauty from Bielsa's boys for the remainder of this season ... there are SIXTEEN more games to go, and I for one can't wait ... to think that even with all the key players Leeds have missed this season, the club actually sitting on 23 points is incredible ... it's been a fantastic effort by all those who have needed to step in, and it's a credit to Bielsa that his team is well positioned to now make an assault on the top ten again there's one thing that gives me so much confidence and faith in a strong finish to the season, and that is Bielsa's manic commitment to fitness ... to execute Bielsa Ball the players have to be supremely fit, every single one of them ... the constant movement is energy sapping, and Bielsa demands that you are able to provide the movement for 120 minutes in the last two seasons we've seen Bielsa's Leeds start to pull away from opponents in the last quarter of the season as their superior fitness began to tell ... teams struggled to live with Leeds as their legs started to buckle under late season fatigue, and mentally a lot of them, with nothing really to play for, headed for the beach in the face of the Leeds onslaught Stoke 5-0, Charlton 4-0 and Derby 3-1 with a hungover, makeshift eleven ... Citeh 2-1, draws against Scum and Pool, Spurs 3-1, Burnley 4-0 and Saints 2-0 ... this was Leeds hitting their groove while opponents were starting to feel the season the same will happen again this season ... Leeds are starting to look sharp, and with players coming back from injury they will only get better ... Bielsa's team is still very much full of running, and they won't slow down in the coming months ... if anything, they will just get stronger, and this will be striking fear into the hearts of their opponents imagine facing this mental lot when you're feeling drained, your thighs are cramping, your lungs are burning, your mouth is dry and your eyes are watering ... it can't be fun, it's chaos at high speed and you're flagging, yet your next task is to track Harrison at full speed for 40 yards, then turn sharply inside and try and stop him getting a cross in ... no, thanks! Bielsa Ball is just warming up, Leeds are starting to take aim at the teams above them, and with a big push for these next sixteen games the players know another top ten finish is within reach ... the Prem isn't filled with quality teams, and clubs like Wolves and Brighton are where they are because they're very organised and disciplined, but they can't break a game wide open the way Leeds can I don't think that any of the teams who still have to face Leeds this season will be looking forward to it ... they know they will be tested for the full 90 minutes, and if they don't concentrate and work exceptionally hard, they will be beaten ... Leeds will be flying at them, and even though Gerrard spent two and a half weeks specifically preparing his team for the Leeds game, they struggled to get a point at home the other key thing to note is that there won't be many teams sitting back for the draw now, and that means more open games like West Ham & Villa ... this suits Leeds perfectly as there will be space to exploit, gold dust for Bielsa Ball and lots of scoring opportunities for Leeds ... oh man! there is a lot to look forward to for the rest of this season ... the Leeds engine is beginning to purr, and if the team continues to play at a high tempo and get stuck into opponents, the club will climb up the table and have a strong finish Bielsa's insistence on using his U23s, ensuring everyone understands Bielsa Ball and all are fit enough to deliver it will pay dividends Don't Panic!! It's going to be epic and lots of fun watching Leeds over the next few months!! BRING IT ON ON ON!! my original Don't Panic thread below https://www.not606.com/threads/dont-panic.395687/
Another fine article, Billy. Still maintain you & @Doc should be publishing your articles on a wider scale.
Nice one Billy Personally I’ll defer judgment until after our next 4 games. If we can maintain our current record of averaging one point per game then we should be fine to kick on with hopefully Phillips & Cooper back and maybe even Bamford. Everton (a) Scum (h) Pool (a) Spuds (h) Supporters expecting more than 4 points are doing so in hope rather than good judgement given we’ve only won 5 games all season. Lose 3 of those games and draw the other would see us right in the thick of a relegation scrap.
Everton are beatable, scum and spurs at home we can get something from them because they are hot and cold, but the pool away looks the one where we could lose.
Spot on Shaks, and the scum are not in great form at the moment dare I say we could even win that one (heart vs head) ? I just get the feeling that we're on the verge of a decent run now with recent performances and players coming back.
Well it's Friday and I've already had a few beers Shaks And I'm usually positive about the mighty whites anyway !
Ch4 are showing the Rhinos 12.30 and then the mighty whites on Premier sports 3.00. Long old day drinking
Agree but it’s points on the board that count. We could just as easily get a draw on Saturday and then lose the next three. Hopefully not course but it’s a vital little run of fixtures before we get some more players back.
It’s Leeds we’ll lose at Everton, leading to much gnashing of teeth and tears. Then Get thumped at home by the scummers as they hit an unexpected return to form… leading to cries of bielsa out and mass suicides amongst the fan base then we’ll win at Liverpool with a Tyler Roberts hat trick You heard it here first
After reading Billy's rticle my immediate thoughts were. Goals?.. Play as much bielsa kamakaze as you like but gifting goals and then failung to score enough is the story of this season.
The real story of this season is, because of an unprecedented amount of injuries, not once being able to field our strongest team.
yes, if we were managed by anyone else I'd be concerned, but Bielsa Ball really is all about winning 9-8, the players need to step up & deliver expect open games away from home and against teams that have to win
I think with the team we’re able to turn out we’ve done really well since Christmas and performances have been much better. The story, for me, of the season to date was that even with a close to fully fit squad at the start of the season I thought we were playing crap. Then we got decimated by injuries that would have crippled most sides but especially hindered us with a small squad. Now even with our two most influential players still missing and our star player being hit and miss, we’re playing our best football of the season. welcome to Leeds
