OPINION
After spending so long in and around the top two of the Championship this season it seems almost infeasible that Leeds United might not be playing Premier League football after the summer.
A mini-collapse in their form has seen them forced to settle for a play-off spot – Norwich City and Sheffield United taking the all important automatic promotion places – leaving the club’s future in doubt for another couple of weeks.
Failure to seal promotion would of course have triggered worries over the mastermind behind the club’s rise up the Championship, manager Marcelo Bielsa, with a relatively short deal signed on his arrival to Elland Road.
Lifting the lid on the Argentine’s deal, his brother Rafael told Argentinian newspaper La Capital: “If they don’t go up to the Premier League, Leeds have the option to keep it. Taking into account the campaign that is fulfilling is difficult to not keep it. And if Leeds go up, it is mandatory for both parties to stay.”
Now that would make it seem as though owner Andrea Radrizzani and the rest of the Leeds board hold all the cards but the manager himself will also have a big say if he stays or not.
The worry would have been that failure to seal promotion would see him leave, Bielsa perhaps not wanting to go through another arduous Championship season – but he seems to have enjoyed himself in the second tier.
Speaking to the Yorkshire Evening Post, the Leeds boss honestly admitted: “From what I saw I saw that have you only a few teams that didn’t have anything at stake in the last games because many teams played either for for the sixth position or to avoid getting relegated.
“For me, it’s an unforgettable experience to have experienced this Championship because I have discovered many pitches, many fans and I lived many experiences.”
It was a huge coup to get Bielsa on board last summer and this could well be crucial if the unthinkable happens and Leeds do not seal promotion this season.
He clearly likes being at Leeds and does not mind the Championship so with another year’s option for the Whites, they should have no trouble keeping him on board regardless of which division they are in.
That is a prospect that will surely have Radrizzani rubbing his hands together – after all, Bielsa is massive for Leeds.