Marcelo Bielsa and Antonio Conte must use every ounce of their experience as Leeds and Tottenham prepare for must-win Premier League clash at Elland Road
Two of football’s most decorated managers go head to head this weekend, but things are far from rosy in the two camps.
Marcelo Bielsa welcomes Antonio Conte to Elland Road on Saturday lunchtime when Leeds take on Tottenham – a Premier League fixture that is exclusively live on talkSPORT – with both sides in desperate need of a positive result.
Bielsa is among the most respected coaches in world football, with the likes of Pep Guardiola and Mauricio Pochettino among those who consider him as a role model in the game.
Renowned for his tactical innovation and coaching style, Bielsa won the Argentine Primera Division on three occasions with Newell’s Old Boys and Vélez Sarsfield, before claiming a gold medal with the Argentina national team at the 2004 Olympic games.
After being runner-up in the Copa Del Rey and Europa League during his time with Athletic Bilbao, the 66-year-old moved to Leeds where he had revived a sleeping giant by winning the Championship title in 2020, while also coming third in the best FIFA Football Coach award that same year.
As for Conte, there aren’t many managers who better fit the profile of a serial winner.
After winning Serie B with Bari, Conte won three Serie A titles with Juventus before moving to Chelsea and winning the Premier League and FA Cup.
He then moved to Inter where he won Serie A four a fourth time and finished as runners up in the Europa League.
However, after moving to Tottenham, the Italian is facing the biggest challenge of his career so far.
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After taking charge of the club in the autumn, the hope was that Conte would be the man to lead Spurs back into the top four.
Unfortunately since taking charge, Tottenham have won just seven of 14 Premier League games under his leadership, a run that includes just one league victory in their last five games.
While that result did come against Manchester City last weekend, there’s a real need for Conte to find some consistency if they’re to push forward from their current eighth position in the table.
A recent interview suggested that Conte could walk away from Spurs if things don’t improve, something that concerned talkSPORT’s Jamie O’Hara.
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“We broke him Jase [Cundy], we broke him,” he said on The Sports Bar.
“If he walks, I’m not watching Spurs again this season.
“The best manager we’ve had, I think in the Premier League years and he’s going to walk after six [sic] months.
“I’ve seen it in him over the last few weeks, his interviews, the way he’s been talking, we spoke about it the other day, before the Man City game about he’s covering his own back.”
The same issue is apparent for Bielsa at Elland Road.
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After guiding Leeds to ninth spot with 59 points in the Premier League last term, the hope among supporters was that they could continue to kick on and push towards the top six this season.
However with just five league wins to their name in their last six matches, the Whites appear to be in freefall as they plummet towards a relegation battle.
Leeds have had more than their fair share of injuries this season with key players such as Liam Cooper, Kalvin Phillips and Patrick Bamford missing much of the campaign so far, but with 19 goals conceded in their last six matches it’s clear to see where the issue lies.
Speaking on his talkSPORT show, Simon Jordan leapt to the defence of Bielsa, saying: “[It’s] laughable to suggest that Leeds United need to be replacing [Bielsa] right now.
“He is an excellent coach, they’re having a difficult time.
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“You stick to your principles. What a ridiculous thing to do, if you suddenly change because of outside influences.”
“This is what this team has been set up to do. This is how he’s built this team. He doesn’t have the players in that group that know how to change so he’s gonna have to make them be more effective.”
Saturday’s match in West Yorkshire will be viewed as a must-win for both teams.
While results on the pitch have been less than impressive for both sides, the hope among supporters will no doubt be that managers with the experience and pedigree of Bielsa and Conte can work their magic and guide their struggling sides towards a run of positive results, starting at Elland Road this weekend.
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February 26, 2022 at 03:45AM Premier League Football Fixtures and Results - talkSPORT https://ift.tt/YRpbhGu
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