Laura Woods has professed her love for Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa.
The Argentine has become a firm favourite at Elland Road since taking over in the dugout last summer, and came within a whisker of taking the Yorkshire giants back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.
And Woods has been eager to sing the veteran boss’ praises.
Speaking on talkSPORT, she said: “I love him. The fans adore him.
“He regularly can be seen walking to and from places. Some of the players apparently saw him the other day walking in the rain and pulled over to ask him if he wanted a lift and he was like ‘no no’, and he’s enjoying it.
“He integrates himself into the community, he goes and sits in the local cafe. He’s a very interesting fellow.”
“I remember watching his Bilbao team… I just fell in love.” ??
“For me, Marcelo Bielsa is one of the greatest coaches.” ?
Ex-New Zealand boss Anthony Hudson on his love for #LUFC’s Bielsa ?
*Video features a brilliant story about #THFC’s Pochettino! pic.twitter.com/x2XDC4naVs
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) September 3, 2019
How good has Bielsa been for Leeds?
First and foremost, how could you not love Bielsa?
Quiet, unassuming, and polite, yet fiercely driven and broodingly charismatic, he truly is an enigma, and a proper scholar of the game.
It is no fluke that both Mauricio Pochettino and Pep Guardiola, two of the most impressive young coaches in world football, cite him as a major influence over their careers, as reported by the BBC, and he is one of the greatest proponents of a clear and definitive footballing philosophy in the modern game.
His style of fast-paced, sleek attacking football isn’t just easy on the eye, it’s extremely lethal too when executed correctly, and the levels of fitness and dedication he demands from his sides is second to none.
From a Leeds perspective, he has been transformative.
The season before Bielsa came in, the club finished 13th in the Championship.
After only really spending money on Patrick Bamford and Barry Douglas last summer, the Argentine then managed to take the club to the cusp of the top flight, missing out at the last minute after a late collapse and play-off heartbreak.
Bielsa started to get the best out of players who had previously been written off like Mateusz Klich, and he spotted young, hungry talent like Jack Clarke to bring through the ranks and improve the first team for minimum cost.
He is wise, intelligent, and efficient, and his points per game average of 1.81 last season, as per Transfermarkt, is the best he has ever managed in club football, and his best since he managed Chile and Argentina in the spell between 1998 and 2011.
Bielsa and Leeds seem to be the perfect fit.