Leeds United: Phil Hay sticks by his bold Jesse Marsch claim

The Athletic’s Phil Hay has insisted that he’s sticking behind his claim that Leeds United and Jesse Marsch aren’t a good fit, especially in the long term.

This is despite seeing Leeds record impressive back-to-back wins in the Premier League in dramatic fashion, which has helped them move away from the bottom three.

It wasn’t too long ago that Leeds were on an eight-game winless streak in the league and people such as Hay were questioning Marsch, with the journalist even stating he didn’t think the American boss would be in charge post-World Cup.

Despite the recent turnaround in form, Hay has insisted on The Phil Hay Show that he is sticking by his claim that Marsch and Leeds aren’t going to be able to stand the test of time.

He said: “Everything in the atmosphere said this is a huge result and we needed it, and nobody thought this was coming at 3-1 down.

“Wherever people stand on the issue of Marsch and his job and what they think of him as a head coach – and people know what I’ve written recently, and I still stand by that, I have to be honest – but nobody wants the club to be relegated and nobody wants the club to get into trouble, and the results are absolutely crucial.

“I have to say, there were a few people who walked past the press box and had a chat after the game, and most of them said, ‘loved that, great finish to the game, great result, but still a lot about the game and performance that worries me,’ and I think that’s a very, very valid point.”

TIF Thoughts on Marsch…

While a lot of the media made something out of Marsch’s future at Leeds following their very poor run of form not so long ago, it appeared very clear from the board and the manager himself that he wasn’t under pressure and wouldn’t be getting the sack anytime soon.

That sort of backing and support appears to have done the players and manager a world of good, as everyone now knows where they stand, players aren’t thinking about a new manager coming in soon and Marsch isn’t desperately fighting for his job – he can just focus on getting a win every weekend.

However, the fact that Leeds fans were chanting the name of Marcelo Bielsa not too long ago would suggest that Marsch is only going to be a few poor results away from being under pressure again from the media and fans, so Hay’s point about Leeds and their current manager not lasting long-term is indeed a valid one.