OPINION
Marcelo Bielsa has spent the entirety of his debut season in English football pulling rabbits out of the hat.
In the face of a never-ending injury list and little in the way of transfer help from the penny-pinching Leeds United hierarchy, the master of the unorthodox has found player solutions where there appeared to be none.
Youth-team players have been fast-tracked into the first team with real success and senior men have plugged the gaps across the pitch caused by a raft of pulled muscles and strained ligaments.
But, even Bielsa was left sounding unconvinced today as he dropped the bombshell that Pablo Hernandez, one of the team’s outstanding players, is a major injury doubt for Friday’s Championship clash against Derby County.
He initially claimed the Spanish maestro will miss out before backtracking slightly and suggesting there is still a possibility he could figure against Frank Lampard’s side.
MB: “Cooper returns to the group.” Douglas, Berardi, Dallas, Bamford & Hernandez not involved in Friday. “We are missing many players. But for me it’s not an excuse.” #lufc
— Adam Pope (@apopey) January 9, 2019
With Samuel Saiz gone, Lewis Baker heading back to Chelsea – a move Bielsa made clear he did not want – and Izzy Brown no closer to making his Leeds bow, to say Leeds have a paucity of alternative playmaker options is something of an understatement.
The manager, who had a heavy cold today and sounded irritable at his press conference, revealed his back-up option if Hernandez misses out is to deploy striker Tyler Roberts as the creative lynchpin.
The problem, as Bielsa pointed out, is that the teenager, 19, is a finisher of attacks rather than a builder of them.
MB: “Roberts will play (no 10) if Hernandez does not. Against QPR he had 3 chances to score which is very good for a number 10. But he didn’t build the offensive play which could have helped the attacks. Pablo builds the attacks whilst Roberts focuses on finishing the attacks. “
— Adam Pope (@apopey) January 9, 2019
In other words, Bielsa is unconvinced that Roberts is the answer to his need for a number 10.
The Wales international could well thrive in a new deeper role, but it would be a real surprise if he did, given he is a centre-forward who can also thrive in the wide forward areas.
He’s not been known up to this point for creating chances for others with nifty footwork and Hernandez or Saiz-esque creativity.
Bielsa has little in the way of options but he is on the verge of making a big mistake by handing such a key role to the wrong player.