Danny Mills thinks not having a Plan B has cost Leeds United automatic promotion

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Former Leeds United defender Danny Mills has told Off the Ball that Marcelo Bielsa’s lack of a Plan B has cost the Whites automatic promotion.

The West Yorkshire-based side looks to be consigned to the lottery of the play-offs following a disastrous Easter period which saw them lose to Wigan and Brentford.

Sheffield United’s six points has placed them in the box seat now and a win over Ipswich Town this weekend will see them place one foot in the Premier League.

Mills believes Bielsa’s one-dimensional style has ultimately proved to be their Achilles heel.

He told Off the Ball: “Leeds have one way of playing. Very intense, very high tempo. There isn’t really a Plan B and they don’t get one or two goals up by half-time, teams work them out and they start to struggle.

“When they’re missing chance after chance, of course, it leaves you open to counter-attacks. That’s what’s happened. Sadly, it looks like it’s now blown the chance of automatic promotion.”

TBR Verdict

It’s hard to agree that Mills has a point here really. Last season, Wolves led the way in emphatic style. They blew their rivals away with Nuno Espirito Santo deploying a style that suited the players he had.

Bielsa has perhaps discovered in the last couple of weeks that some of his players have quite simply not proved good enough. When they have needed their star men to step up to the plate, sadly they have come up short.

There is a lot of pressure on teams in the Championship to win promotion. Leeds may have faltered at the final hurdle but they will still be heavily fancied to win the play-offs and reach the Premier League.