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Andrea Radrizzani makes Marcelo Bielsa revelation in wake of off-field Leeds United update

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Image for Andrea Radrizzani makes Marcelo Bielsa revelation in wake of off-field Leeds United update

Leeds United will hold talks with Marcelo Bielsa over signing a new contract at Elland Road, amid fresh investment in the club by the 49ers Enterprise.

That’s according to the club’s owner Andrea Radrizzani, who it seems remains determined to keep the Argentine involved at Elland Road for the foreseeable future.

As is often the case with Bielsa, the 65-year-old only put pen to paper on a one-year deal with Leeds at the start of this season, meaning he will once again be out of contract in the summer.

However, it seems as though Leeds have no intention of letting him go any time soon in spite of that, despite the recent change to the club’s behind the scenes structure.

It was announced on Monday that the San Francisco 49ers have increased their stake in the club to 37%, and 49ers Franchise president Paraag Marathe has been appointed as Leeds’ vice chairman.

That however, appears to have no bearing with regards to the club’s stance towards Bielsa, as speaking about the Argentine in an interview with The Times in the wake of the 49ers announcement, Radrizzani said: “Marcelo is a man of his word, he doesn’t need a contract and we decide year by year because obviously he’s far from home.

“Especially in a year with Covid we need to respect the circumstances and decide in the right time.”

Indeed, it appears there will be no announcement about a new deal for Bielsa any time soon, something the Leeds manager himself would seemingly prefer, with Radrizzani going on to explain“It is our intention to continue with him and we will open a discussion with him when he’s ready to do so, but at the moment Marcelo is very focused on each game so I don’t know if he’s really caring about his own future as he’s so analytic and focused on his job.”

Bielsa is now into his third season with Leeds, and his first in the Premier League with the Whites after claiming the Championship title last season.

The Argentine has already taken charge of more matches as Leeds manager (120) than any other club he has managed.

This feels like it is really good to see from a Leeds United perspective.

Bielsa has worked wonders during his time at Elland Road, already earning himself a place in club folklore.

As a result, with the Argentine seemingly on track to help the club re-establish themselves in the Premier League, it is hard to see too many associated with the club wanting him to leave any time soon.

The fact therefore that Leeds clearly intend to do what they can to keep him around is a good sign, and you feel Bielsa himself will be tempted to stick around for at least one more season, both to really prove himself in the Premier League, and have the chance of managing in front of the club’s fans at Elland Road again, given the repore he has built with them during his time in Yorkshire.

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UCLan Sports Journalism graduate. Have been working for Leeds All Over since summer 2020, and can only be found writing on Football League World.