Marcelo Bielsa: A maverick about to take English football by storm

The 63-year-old is a maverick and revolutionary who will bring an era of mystique to a league that is already the third most watched in Europe, behind the Premier League and the Bundesliga.

Nicknamed ‘El Loco’, or 'crazy', Bielsa has enjoyed a storied managerial career that has spanned three decades, 10 clubs – though one of those tenures lasted two days – and stints in charge of the Chile and Argentine national teams.

An idealist idolised by, among others, Pep Guardiola – who calls him the world’s best – Bielsa’s influence on the tactical trends that currently underpin football have been broad and extensive. Yet, for a coach of such pedigree, his trophy cabinet remains relatively threadbare: one Olympic gold and three Argentine titles is the sum of a 28-year career. It tends to be boom or bust with Bielsa.

An idiosyncratic ideologue, Bielsa is completely wedded to his ideas. The belief in his own methods are best surmised by the man himself.

And he always believes he will triumph.

Bielsa’s philosophy is centred around a fluid, changeable 3-3-1-3 formation; by nature, his teams are attacked minded with an emphasis on winning the ball back high up the pitch. His brand of football – like the man himself – is demanding both physically and intellectually.

If Leeds are to excel this season, then the players at the club will not only have to buy into Bielsa’s methods but also understand them. The Argentine has enjoyed great successes but also endured multiple failures due to the complexity of his demands.

His Chile and Athletic Bilbao sides were lauded not only for their achievements but their expansive, expressive football. His Rojiblancos side were applauded off the pitch at Old Trafford in March 2012 after a Europa League last-16 tie such was their excellence.

However, failure has sometimes followed success; while some of his teams - most notably Bilbao - have fatigued toward season's end. The Argentine has been out of work since December 2017 when he was relieved of his duties at Lille after a run of results that saw the Ligue Un side win just three times in 13 games.

He is a firebrand, and a man of impulse. For example, he was appointed Lazio manager on July 6 2016; he resigned on July 8 2016. The reason? A disagreement over player recruitment.

He has a tempestuous relationship with the press – he refuses to give exclusives and instead prefers to deal with the media via press conferences.

He has an even more tempestuous relationship with coffee. See below from his time at Marseille.

"My admiration for Marcelo Bielsa is huge because he makes the players much, much better.

“Still I didn't meet one guy, a former player from Marcelo Bielsa who speaks no good of him. They are grateful about his influence on their careers in football.

“He helped me a lot with his advice.

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"I have the influence of several coaches: Bielsa, Eriksson, Basile. Bielsa taught me the most."

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"He is like my football father. We are a generation of coaches that were his disciples. How he feels football, the passion he has for football, I think we all took that from him."

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“He was the one who taught me how to train on rainy days, he taught me everything.”

"It is imprudent to promise something that you can't be totally certain of. But at the same time it would be impossible not to be dreaming about taking Leeds back to the Premier League."

To ensure fans have the best possible viewing experience of every goal from every EFL game this season, Quest re-launched its channel in High Definition on Sky, Virgin and Freesat services on July 31.

Quest has also unveiled a brand-new QuestOD app for iPhone and Android devices, which allows all fans to watch EFL on Quest for free, live and on-demand in HD on all devices. QuestOD can be accessed via the website - www.questod.co.uk - and the Google Play Store and App Store.