Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Leeds United: Marcelo Bielsa plays down Championship title amid ‘wrong moment’ to discuss his future

Coach shifted praise onto his players

Leeds United fans celebrate promotion

Marcelo Bielsa says he has not become an overnight success simply by guiding Leeds United to the Championship title and promotion to the Premier League.

Leeds secured promotion on Friday after second-placed West Bromwich Albion’s loss at Huddersfield Town before being confirmed as champions with Brentford’s defeat by Stoke City.

“I’ve worked in football for 30 years and one title doesn’t change a lot, the percentage of trophies I have,” said Bielsa, who took charge of Leeds in 2018 after trophy-less stints with Marseille, Lazio and Lille.

“What makes me happy is the fact I did this project with this group of players across two years.

“I am recognised in Leeds for this job, but honestly I think more than the capacity or the skill of my leadership what makes the difference in the promotion was the capacity of our players.”

Bielsa’s contract is due to expire at the end of the season and the Argentine remained tight-lipped about his future.

“I don’t want to put the focus on me. I think that everything that is linked with me, right now, it’s not the moment to talk about this,” he said.

Reuters

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in