Arsenal fans laud Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa after Lacazette comments

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It was not just what happened on the pitch during Leeds United’s FA Cup tie with Arsenal on Monday night that led to Marcelo Bielsa winning a lot of admirers.

Leeds were outstanding during the first-half at the Emirates. They played some superb football and created more than enough chances to put the game to bed before the break.

Unfortunately for the Championship leaders, they were unable to take one of those chances. And it was Reiss Nelson who punished the visitors during the second-half with the game’s only goal.

Arsenal were significantly better after the break. But there was one incident after the interval that may have left some Gunners fans feeling slightly concerned for a short time.

The referee halted play to let VAR have a look at an incident involving Alexandre Lacazette and Gaetano Berardi. The clash ended with the striker kicking out at the Leeds man.

It was not a particularly malicious reaction. But Lacazette could have arguably had few complaints had the referee been instructed to show the striker a red card.

Interestingly however, when asked about the incident after the game, Bielsa insisted, in comments reported by Leeds Live, that he is glad that Lacazette was not sent off.

“I never wish a red card for the opponent when things happen like that,” he said. “It’s better playing 11 v 11, I don’t like to claim things, but I say that because your comment, I didn’t realise it happened. The better thing is to believe nothing happened because VAR said that.”

Those comments have seen a number of Arsenal fans express their admiration for Bielsa. Plenty of managers would have slammed the decision to send the striker off, particularly after learning that they had a genuine case to ask for a red card.

But Bielsa has been magnanimous in his assessment. And that has seen the Leeds boss receive a lot of plaudits from the Arsenal fans.

Here is how some of the fans reacted to Bielsa’s comments…