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‘Quite embarrassed’ – Many Leeds United fans in disagreement with Bielsa as midweek call explained

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Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa has defended his decision to hand Kiko Casilla the captaincy for the League Cup defeat to Hull City on Wednesday night.

Back in September 2019, Leeds made the trip to Lee Bowyer’s Charlton Athletic looking to keep up their title push but fell to a disappointing 1-0 defeat that had more dire repercussions than just three dropped points.

An FA investigation followed the game after an alleged incident between Kiko Casilla and Charlton’s Jonathan Leko, with the Leeds stopper being claimed to have used racially-aggravated language to him.

It took the FA until late February to come to a decision, in which they charged Casilla with a breach of FA Rule E3 on the balance of possibility, fining him £60,000 and banning him for eight games.

The delay in the football season saw Casilla sit out until July where he made his return during the guard of honour at Derby County after Leeds clinched the league title.

The decision from Bielsa to keep him in the first team didn’t sit right with the fans who thought he had no place left at this club after the incident, but his latest decision has left an even more bitter taste in the mouth following Wednesday’s League Cup clash against Hull City.

Bielsa started the Spaniard in goal and even handed him the captain’s armband as he was once again at the centre of the action.

Speaking ahead of the Fulham game at the weekend, Bielsa addressed his decision to hand Casilla the armband. He stated (quotes via LeedsLive): “I interpreted the feelings of his team-mates.

“His team-mates think he deserved to be the captain and we have to listen to those messages. The players see in their captain someone who they feel can represent them.

“I respect the thoughts of any person. After that, opinions can be argued. Surely those who judge Kiko ignore a lot of the things that his team-mates see in him.

“So you are saying I should have contemplated over whether to make Kiko captain? Either I take the opinion of the fans or of the players. I can’t deny that the captain not only represents his team-mates, but also the club.

“Of course, we also value the conduct of Kiko, which only we can judge because we’re part of the group. When you are subjected to what other people judge you for, or what other people think, it doesn’t matter what we think, we have to accept the decision of the authorities. If there’s correlation between what the authorities, the fans and his team-mates think, surely the public won’t have all the information that his team-mates would have.

Fans weren’t best pleased with the decision, regardless of the justification and good intentions of Bielsa…

I’m of the stance where I just think it would be better for all parties if Casilla was just moved onto another club happy to take him, regardless of whether he’s believed to have said what was alleged, let alone doing it.

Not only do the club now have this moral dilemma hanging over them, they also have a hugely inconsistent goalkeeper producing a catalogue of errors while Illan Meslier is showing his potential.

Bielsa justifies his choice for handing him the armband well, that it was a nominated decision by the players, but it sends the wrong message when accusations are so rife about the Charlton game.

It just doesn’t sit right that the club can be involved in such great anti-racism campaigns while seemingly hoping this ‘racism’ case is brushed under the carpet and forgotten about.

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Leeds United season ticket holder since 2013/14, currently situated in the middle of the FA5 noise. From Pablo Hernandez to 5-1 drubbings, I've seen it all at Elland Road.