The Leeds United fans in the Transfer Tavern are desperately hoping Marcelo Bielsa can take advantage of his relationship with both Pep Guardiola and Mauricio Pochettino this summer.
Leeds’ new Argentine manager arrives at Elland Road with a reputation for having passion, eccentricity and charisma in abundance, three qualities of which have often been prescribed to two managers who regard Bielsa as something of a tactical genius, namely Guardiola and Pochettino. The Premier League managers have taken plenty of inspiration from Bielsa in forming their own managerial style, so it’s fair to say the pairing owe a great debt to Leeds’ new arrival.
Perhaps the most logical way of repaying the debt would be via the transfer market where both Guardiola and Pochettino have options available whom Bielsa would naturally be eager to bring to Yorkshire this summer.
And Bielsa might just be in luck, as respected Leeds United blogger Simon O’Rourke has recently claimed that the door is open for the Whites to sign both Phil Foden and Juan Foyth, presumably on loan deals, although the details of the potential transfers have not been clarified.
Murmurs emerging from Man City in the past have suggested that Foden will not be available for a transfer this summer, as Guardiola is eager to keep him in Manchester where he can personally monitor his development and enable him to improve by working alongside him on the training ground, but those suggestions were prevalent prior to Bielsa’s arrival.
Meanwhile, Foyth struggled to break into the first-team last season despite being regarded as a huge talent to watch for the future, so the 20-year-old should be hoping to secure first-team football next season via a temporary loan deal.
Considering the obvious talent and raw potential both of these players possess along with the fact Guardiola and Pochettino are practically students of Bielsa, Leeds are in an incredibly advantageous position to secure a sensational double deal this summer.
Foden and Foyth’s respective lack of experience at the top level will understandably raise question marks over their ability to succeed, but there is no doubting that they are fundamentally fantastic footballers, and under a manager of Bielsa’s experience there’s no doubt they would be well placed to thrive at Elland Road.
Leeds have already set the tone for a brilliant campaign with their managerial appointment, but they would really begin to strike fear into their Championship rivals if they pulled off a double swoop for this pair of exciting wonderkids.
Leeds fans – thoughts? Let us know below!
