OPINION
It was a hugely disappointing end to the season for Leeds and their supporters, but there are big reasons to be optimistic about the 19/20 season.
The Daily Mail had previously reported that Andrea Radrizzani could sell up and Bielsa could leave if the club failed to win promotion.
However, the latest noise coming from Elland Road is that Leeds are increasingly confident that Bielsa will stay for a second season and and that he is “poised” to commit himself to the club.
And in a leaked email from executive Angus Kinnear, it was said that Radrizzani is as committed as ever.
And there are real grounds for optimism over the summer business at Leeds.
Bielsa had previously said that his current squad wouldn’t be able to repeat the feat of the 18/19 season. Talking on the BBC website he said “Not one single player on our team would reproduce the performances this constant in another season.”
If Bielsa is going to agree to another season then he surely must have been made a commitment about new recruits.
Last season Bielsa turned a team that finished 13th into one that just missed out on automatic promotion and topped the table for a decent period of time.
Imagine what he can do with new players, experience of the Championship and the squad, and plenty of young players like Jamie Shackleton ready to take the step up.
We think if he agrees to stay – and it’s looking like he will – that it’s going to be a busy and exciting summer for Leeds fans. Bielsa has already been spotted with director of football Victor Orta, seemingly discussing targets, and between them they should be ready to bring a fresh wave of excitement to Elland Road.