Leeds United return to Premier League aiming to unleash their full potential

Even in defeat, the football Marcelo Bielsa’s team played was thrilling, but the problem £27m club record signing Rodrigo has since been signed to address was all too evident to more seasoned Whites-watchers.

It is not true to say Leeds will bring football England’s top-flight has never seen before. Manchester City and Arsenal play in a similar way, as did Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham Hotspur. But they were copying Bielsa.

Leeds showed against Mikel Arteta’s Gunners they are extremely good at high-energy, possession-based 21st Century football.

Knowing what is coming and stopping it are two different things. Arteta compared the experience to a trip to the dentist.

With the same luck, Leeds are capable of as explosive a first campaign back in the top-flight as Sheffield United had in 2019-20. The Blades were fortunate their top players were so impervious to injury, allowing an extremely settled side to finish ninth in the Premier League.

The way Bielsa plays is quite different to his Yorkshire neighbours but the foundations are the same – a small group of players sticking to principles honed over a couple of seasons.

Even so, improvement will be needed.

At times over the last two seasons, Leeds played exhilarating football bearing all the hallmarks of their world-renowned coach.

Turning it into results has been harder.

Even in winning last season’s Championship, there were games where opponents were battered by Leeds but flattered by the scoreline.

On occasion they escaped with undeserved points.

A new No 9 was needed to address that, but in Rodrigo, the Elland Road club have not unearthed a “Sniffer” in the mould of Allan Clarke.

Bielsa centre-forwards have to be more than just poachers, which is why Patrick Bamford saw off the on-loan Eddie Nketiah in the first half of last season.

Rodrigo is a very modern centre-forward – capable of leading the line but also happy wide or dropping into midfield. He had more assists than goals in last season’s La Liga.

If Rodrigo is going to work hard to bring them into play, the midfielders and wingers must chip in with goals.

Beyond Bamford’s 16, no one else reached double figures last season, although Pablo Hernandez only fell one short. The Spaniard remains crucial to the Whites but the passage of time marches on. At 35, Leeds will have to hope the spread-out fixtures help him more than the greater speed and intensity of Premier League football. They need him to be their David Silva, but he is a year older than the man who has just stepped back from dominating Manchester City midfields.

If Tyler Roberts can stay fitter for longer, he can shoulder more of the burden, albeit in a different way.

Jack Harrison (six) and Helder Costa (four) shared ten goals last season, but should be aiming higher. If not, Ian Poveda showed potential when the season resumed after coronavirus.

Centre-back Ben White will be sorely missed at the end of his season-long loan from Brighton, but in Robin Koch sporting director Victor Orta has sourced a well-qualified replacement.

The German international will be expected to not only match White’s defensive serenity but also his ability to bring the ball out and change the pictures.

With Gaetano Berardi’s contract up, there is not much specialist competition at this stage if he cannot.

Luke Ayling, Kalvin Phillips and Pascal Strujik are quite capable of filling in, but have been earmarked for different roles, Strujik emerging as a holding midfielder despite having learnt his trade in the heart of defence.

Below the surface, Leeds are assembling a formidable array of teenage talent and whilst it would be unreasonable to expect all of them to make an impact in 2020-21, you could not definitely rule out Joe Gelhardt, Sam Greenwood or one of the others developing ahead of schedule.

One thing this squad does not lack is potential. It just needs to find the potency to make the most of it.

Support The Yorkshire Post and become a subscriber today.

Your subscription will help us to continue to bring quality news to the people of Yorkshire. In return, you’ll see fewer ads on site, get free access to our app and receive exclusive members-only offers.

So, please - if you can - pay for our work. Just £5 per month is the starting point. If you think that which we are trying to achieve is worth more, you can pay us what you think we are worth. By doing so, you will be investing in something that is becoming increasingly rare. Independent journalism that cares less about right and left and more about right and wrong. Journalism you can trust.

Thank you, James Mitchinson. Editor.