Former Leeds United midfielder Vinnie Jones has highlighted a particular game from Marcelo Bielsa’s time in charge that made the football world stand up and notice.
Bielsa was sacked from his role with the Whites on Sunday after over three-and-a-half years in charge and has been replaced by former RB Leipzig boss Jesse Marsch.
The Argentine made a remarkable impact at Elland Road both on and off the pitch with his major high point being ending Leeds ’ 16-year wait for Premier League football in 2020.
He then guided Leeds to a ninth-place finish in their first season back in the top-flight and all while on that journey, rekindled a relationship between the club and its supporters.
Jones has been discussing the exit of Bielsa in his latest Easyodds column and picked out the FA Cup match with Arsenal in January 2020 as one that sticks out in his head.
Although Leeds went onto lose the match 1-0, they produced an entirely dominant first-half display against the Premier League big guns on their own patch.
The 57-year-old thinks that is the game where the wider footballing community began to take notice of the sheer impact Bielsa was having at the club.
He said: “Getting Leeds out of the Championship was amazing, though, and that first year in the Premier League was incredible.
“But I’ll take you back to the season before - to January 6, 2020, and an FA Cup third round clash.
“Leeds lined up against Arsenal. Leeds were a Championship side, Arsenal a Premier League powerhouse - but Leeds ran rings round them in the first half.
“That night they showed Arsenal - and other teams no doubt - a brand new way of playing football called Bielsaball. They might have lost on the night to the strength in depth of the Gunners, but had made a huge impression.
“They became, in the space of the 45 minutes of that first half, everyone’s favourite second team. Their football was fresh and fast, direct and breathtaking.
“They had teams staring like a rabbits in headlights with high-pressing tactics, forcing them into making passes they weren’t used to doing, causing mistakes and then breaking loose.
“But in time the best managers sussed how to play against this - and Bielsa had no answers it seemed. Or maybe, this season, he just didn’t have the players. I’m not going to criticise him.”
