Marcelo Bielsa admits to Leeds mistake in Birmingham defeat

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Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa has admitted he was frustrated with a tactical decision he made with midfielder Mateusz Klich in the defeat to Birmingham.

The Whites were beaten on Saturday 1-0 away to Birmingham, as Che Adams scored the only goal for the hosts.

It means that Sheffield Untied leapfrogged Leeds into second in the Championship table and it’s now Bielsa’s team that are doing the chasing in the race for automatic promotion to the Premier League.

Bielsa claimed that he didn’t quite get it right with regards to his set-up with central midfielder Klich, who is usually a main attacking threat in the team and struggled at stages against Birmingham.

“The position of Klich didn’t help the team to create chances in attack. After they scored we moved his position and he started to attack more. Our attacking improved,” Bielsa said in his post-match press conference.

“The decisions I made from the bench couldn’t change the result in the way I wanted to do. The changes I made weren’t enough so I would criticise myself for that. I take the responsibility about the positioning of Klich.”

TBR’s View:

Bielsa is meticulous in his methods and that’s part of the reason he’s turned Leeds into serious promotion contenders this campaign.

Klich is most effective for the Yorkshire giants when he’s going forward and has eight goals across all competitions this season, but the 28-year-old is the engine in midfield too.

Bielsa is still the mastermind at Elland Road that could finally get the club back in the top flight and it’s not often he gets his tactics wrong.

The Whites travel to Preston in midweek for their next game and it’s vital they return to winnings ways.