Andoni Iraola factfile: ‘Bielsa-like’ Leeds target who’d love Premier League move

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Leeds United have reportedly set their sights on Rayo Vallecano manager Andoni Iraola.

According to The Athletic, Leeds are ‘weighing up an approach’ for the Rayo Vallecano manager.

The Whites are currently on the lookout for Jesse Marsch’s replacement in the Elland Road dugout.

Leeds parted company with Marsch on Monday after the Whites lost to Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

It was the Elland Road outfit’s seventh Premier League game without a victory.

Leeds haven’t won in the league since 5 November and only goal difference separates them from the bottom three.

Leeds target Iraola – factfile

Iraola seems like a good shout for the Elland Road dugout.

The former Athletic Bilbao defender has made a name for himself in management with Rayo Vallecano.

Iraola took charge of the club in 2020, when they were in the Spanish second division.

At present, Rayo sit fifth in La Liga, just three points behind fourth-placed Atletico Madrid.

Last season, Iraola steered his side to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey.

This was the first time in 40 years they’d got that far.

More remarkably, Iraola steered second-tier CD Mirandes to the final four of the competition in 2019-20.

The 40-year-old also has a few connections with Leeds figures past and present.

Iraola played under Marcelo Bielsa at Athletic Bilbao and played alongside Jack Harrison at New York City FC.

The Rayo manager appears to have adopted Bielsa’s high-pressing, energetic approach to the game.

Last year, scouting outlet Breaking the Lines wrote: “His ideas are Bielsa-like – bold, courageous, high-octane.

“His demeanour (is) reminiscent of (Ernesto) Valverde – more reserved, calm and calculated.

“He has worked miracles before in his short managerial career, taking Segunda side Mirandés to the 2019-20 Copa del Rey semi-final, beating Sevilla and Villarreal on the way.

“But this Rayo rollercoaster ride feels more significant. A resounding affirmation to the footballing world, perhaps, that Andoni Iraola is no one-season wonder.

“His philosophy is refreshingly high risk, high reward, relying squarely on athleticism and commitment to maintain some sort of order within the chaos, whereby attacks are full-blooded and direct, and defence is immediate and aggressive.”

‘I’d love to’

Better still for Leeds, Iraola has previously admitted he’d love to manage in the “best league in the world” – the Premier League.

“To get to the Premier League things would need to go very well for me,” he told the Daily Mail in 2021.

“I’d have to have a very good career to get there. But I’d love to because right now it’s the best league in the world.

“But I’m conscious that I’ve just started. I have had 13 games in La Liga and I have to do a lot more to prove myself as a coach.”

Things have been going very well for Iraola. And now Leeds could well give him his chance in the Premier League.