Marcelo Bielsa pays glowing tribute to Leeds United's unique fans as Whites supporters finally return to Elland Road in full - YEP 20/8/21
Leeds United's fans are finally heading back to Elland Road in full, backed by a glowing tribute from the club's Argentine head coach.
By Lee Sobot
Leeds have not played in front of a capacity home crowd
since March 2020 due to nearly 18 months of restrictions in the country's fight
against coronavirus.
But Elland Road will finally be full for Saturday
afternoon's Premier League clash against Everton, for which around 35,000
spectators will see Marcelo Bielsa's Whites lock horns with the Toffees.
A portion of United's supporters were able to grace the
stands of their famous home for last season's final game of the campaign
against West Brom in May, for which a gate of 8,000 saw Bielsa's side record a
3-1 victory.
Three months later, crowds will finally return to the ground
in full and Bielsa says his players will savour an experience unlike any other
in front of the club's passionate fans.
"The Premier League without fans and with fans is not
the same," said Bielsa.
"And the fans of Leeds are not the same as the majority
of the other teams in the league, not only because it is the club that we
belong to but because of how generous and present they are in every game.
"So to live this experience is unique."
Leeds took 3,000 fans to last weekend's Premier League
opener against Manchester United at Old Trafford which was watched by a bumper
attendance of 72,732.
Bielsa's Whites were blitzed 5-1 and now face an Everton
side who recorded a 3-1 victory at home to Southampton over the opening weekend
in what was a first competitive game in charge of the Toffees for Rafa Benitez.
"Sincerely, I can't remember if we have come up against
each other," said Bielsa of Benitez.
"Both of us have been in this profession for a long
time. What has made him successful is he puts together a very compact team,
difficult to beat and he always manages to get the maximum possible out of the
players he manages.
"There hasn't been complete changes with regards to the
players. The players are basically the same ones apart from the two wide
players that they brought in. And the changes that I expect are those that I
expect with Benitez that his teams are efficient, strong and hard to
beat."
Asked about the return of fans in full potentially creating
a swing in the number of home wins, Bielsa reasoned: "There's some data
that without the public, the home side wins less. The statistics confirm this.
"With me in particular, the absence of fans permitted
greater communication between the players and technical staff.
"But the effect of the crowd when we play away, I don't
consider it a determining factor with regards to our performances.
"The effect that it has for our opponents - I can't
measure that."