Opposition Focus: Leeds United

LEEDS VS FULHAM | 19 SEPTEMBER 2020

We asked Leeds United Fan Hub a few questions leading up to our massive premier league fixture against them…

Is Bielsa the right manager to guide you through the premier league?

Absolutely he is. Bielsa is an elite level coach, not a promotion specialist. The fact that he’s spent two seasons in the second tier is testament to his commitment to the Leeds project. You can see the massive improvement of what was a fairly average bunch of players into internationals; with the new additions, I can see further improvements. The style of play and levels of fitness are a standout in the Premier League, I don’t think another manager would be able to take Leeds as far as Bielsa will. Bielsa is basically untouchable at Leeds at the moment; we genuinely could not conceive of a better coach for us in the world right now.

Who do you think your standout player could be this?

Helder Costa is going to be a more prominent player this season than last as there will be more space for him to run into. In the Championship most teams defended deep against us, meaning his pace was never fully utilised. I’d like to see more of Jamie Shackleton; another homegrown player who is breaking into the first team and is a bundle of energy.

How confident are you going into this game because of your 3 goals scored against Liverpool?

The quality of those goals (and the unusual efficiency in terms of shots to goals) indicates we ought to be confident of scoring more. Bamford, in particular, is a confidence player and I expect him to start on Saturday. It shows we can compete in this division.

What signings would you like to make for the rest of this transfer window?

There’s a lot of chatter around Rodrigo De Paul of Udinese; he’s an attacking midfielder and I’d love him at Leeds as the successor to Pablo Hernandez. I really think we need a left-sided defender as the under 23s (Bielsa sees them as part of the first-team squad) in those positions lack the experience for the Premier League. Ideally, I’d like to see Kiko Casilla leave the club and us sign an experienced keeper to help Meslier.

Where do you think you will finish this season?

I can see us losing quite a few games by the odd goal on the counter or transition so we won’t be pushing at the top end, but there’s enough quality to finish lower mid-table e.g. 13th.

Leeds VS Fulham: what’s the first thing that comes to mind from years gone by?

At Elland Road in the Championship, a lot of games seemed to be midweek and the travelling support from Fulham was never great. However every time Fulham have had a good team and made life difficult for us, scoring a few cracking goals.

What are your score predictions and how do you think the game going to go?

Depends who scores first – if it’s Fulham then it’ll be a slog and probably end 1-1; if it’s Leeds then I can see us picking Fulham off on the break again.  So 2-0 Leeds.

Thank you to @LS11LUFC for answering our questions!