Former Leeds United midfielder Carlton Palmer believes Marcelo Bielsa is waiting upon reassurances in the transfer market before signing a new contract at Elland Road.
The former Athletic Bilbao boss has just a few months remaining on his current deal with the West Yorkshire outfit and is yet to confirm his plans for next season.
His two-and-a-half-year stint with the White is the longest the Argentine has ever spent at one club, and Palmer believes the South American will only stay if he can see progress is being made.
The likes of Robin Koch, Diego Llorente and Rodrigo joined the Championship winners last summer as Leeds spent almost £100m to strengthen ahead of their first Premier League campaign in 16 years, and in an exclusive interview with Football Fan Cast, Palmer claimed Bielsa will be waiting upon assurances he’ll have sufficient funds to strengthen before putting pen to paper on a new contract.
He said: “They’ll certainly bring players in if Bielsa stays. I think that’s why Bielsa hasn’t signed a new contract yet. I think he wants to get to the end of the season and sit down with the owners and see what money is available for him.
“I think Bielsa’s the type of manager, from what I’ve seen from him in the past, if he can’t see progression, he doesn’t see the point of staying — and that’s why he’s ended up moving so often.”
TIF Thoughts on Bielsa…
Leeds have enjoyed tremendous progress under the 65-year-old over the last three seasons, and he’s established himself as a firm fans favourite during his time on English shores.
The Elland Road faithful will be hoping the Argentine prolongs his time at the club, although the enigmatic manager is hard to predict.
Assuring Bielsa that he will have sufficient funds the strengthen the first-team squad in the upcoming transfer window could certainly go some way to keeping him, though, and it may prove to be a deciding factor in his immediate future.