OPINION
Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa has proven himself to be a fearsome opponent in the dugout but Saturday saw him show off his cool and calm disposition when things were heating up against Bolton.
It was a fiery clash between the title chasers and the relegation battlers and it threatened to spill over quite spectacularly in a touchline fracas in which members from both clubs found themselves involved after a foul on Ezgjan Alioski.
As shown on Sky Sports’ Twitter account there were a number of individuals treading dangerously near to the line of the law and Bolton boss Phil Parkinson saw himself sent off for his behaviour.
WATCH
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Josh Magennis sparks a mass touchline brawl at Elland Road. pic.twitter.com/yE35W9qghp— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) February 23, 2019
In stark contrast Bielsa ignored the whole palaver and calmly walked over to the stricken Alioski to make sure the Macedonian was alright – his maturity and decorum likely to be the sort of thing he would like to see from his own players.
However, that cannot be said for one of the Argentine’s favourite players in Mateusz Klich, who did plenty to garner the support of the Elland Road faithful but embarrassed himself with a petulant display of disrespect to Bolton’s players.
He was videoed walking up to one of the visitors with a water bottle before squeezing it down the player’s back – and you can imagine that Bielsa will be fuming with such a childish action.
It is not what he wants to see from his men out on the pitch and after demonstrating exactly how little he cares for winding up the opposition, Klich’s decision will surely have been slammed behind closed doors.
Fans at Elland Road can expect not to see such behaviour any time soon – the Argentine is a disciplinarian who will no doubt look dimly on the Polish star’s actions.