Soccer Football - Premier League - Leeds United v West Ham United - Elland Road, Leeds, Britain - September 25, 2021 Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa gives instructions to his players Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club /league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio has made clear that Everton are pushing ‘so, so strong’ to convince Marcelo Bielsa to join them.
The Lowdown: Everton must act quickly
The Toffees are still on the hunt for a new manager after a whirlwind few days which have seen Farhad Moshiri sacking Frank Lampard, Bielsa reportedly turning the Toffees down and the club losing out on Arnaut Danjuma despite all but securing a deal.
Football Insider has reported that Bielsa has already turned down the job at Everton, however, other outlets are suggesting that the manager merely has reservations about taking up the role given how slow he considers the squad to be.
It would be arguably a major blow for Everton to miss out on Bielsa as he turned Leeds United into a solid Premier League side during his years at Elland Road, and Moshiri would hope he could rejuvenate what appears to be a stale Everton squad.
The Latest: Bielsa still top of the list
Di Marzio, speaking from Italy on Sky Sports News’ The Transfer Show, believes Bielsa is indeed being pursued by Everton as their primary target despite the ongoing reports about his reservations.
He said: “I don’t know what you know about the [new] Everton coach after Lampard was sacked, but I’m told that they are trying and pushing so, so strong for Marcelo Bielsa.
“I don’t know if Marcelo Bielsa will say, ‘okay, I’m coming back to the Premier League’, but they want Marcelo Bielsa.”
The Verdict: Moshiri should go all in on Bielsa
Bielsa has been hailed as the ‘perfect‘ manager for Everton by broadcaster Kweku Afari because of how he improved players such as Kalvin Phillips and Liam Cooper at Leeds.
Given that Everton have financial restrictions and not a lot of money to spend in the transfer window, we think bringing in a coach who can improve players that are underperforming at the club is someone Moshiri must go for.
While Bielsa does appear to come with a lot of non-negotiables including having his own coaching staff and the way he wishes the squad to play, Moshiri must look at his previous failures with managers and finally hand over control to someone like Bielsa to ensure the club avoids the dreaded drop into the Championship, as more drastic structural changes may well be what clicks this Everton side into gear before it is too late.
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