Ian Harte has backed Leeds United to stay in the Premier League and avoid relegation to the Championship. The Whites currently sit 16th in the Premier League, seven points above the drop zone ahead of the run-in.
The gap was extended when the Whites earned a dramatic last-gasp 3-2 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers just before the international break. Goals from Jack Harrison, Rodrigo and Luke Ayling saw Jesse Marsch's side come from two behind to seal all three points at Molineux.
This was after Leeds had beaten Norwich City in what was a labelled a six-pointer at the bottom of the division. Successive victories have given the Whites a cushion from the sides below them and Marsch's men can now build on those results going into the remainder of the campaign.
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When asked about whether he thought Leeds would stay in the top-flight, Harte told Freebets.com: "Yeah, I think so, Coops is back, Bamford went off injured, but you have Kalvin coming back. Leeds have massively missed Kalvin and Liam Cooper – they’re the spine of the team and once they’ve bedded back in, we should only see improvement from then onwards."
Before Marsch's appointment, Leeds were dropping ever closer to the bottom three and in real danger of a relegation battle. The Whites had conceded 22 goals in February - a Premier League record for a calendar month and they were struggling to pick up any kind of results.
Bielsa will still be remembered by the Leeds fanbase for what he achieved at the club, guiding the Whites to the Championship title and a top-half finish last term. But Harte has admitted that something needed to change.
He added: "You’re always going to get mixed opinions, but I was at the game when they got beaten 4-0 by Tottenham and something needed to happen dramatically, otherwise the team will have gotten relegated. Playing the style of football, which was refreshing last season for the Premier League, you always have that second season where teams work you out and they were just leaking too many goals.
"Jesse has been a good appointment. It looks like he gets on well with the players, he’s trying to implement his own style but sadly yes, Bielsa had to go given the run they were on. What he’s done for Leeds though will always be remembered."
