Premier League battle with Brazil FA takes new twist, Leeds United's Victor Orta on the summer transfer window - YEP 3/9/21
Leeds United and Marcelo Bielsa are currently enjoying a well-earned rest amid the first international break of the Premier League campaign.
By Joe Urquhart
It was a strange summer for Leeds United director of
football Victor Orta but one that ended with what he feels is a stronger squad
for Marcelo Bielsa to work with.
“It was a strange summer," Orta told the YEP.
"To be honest I feel this summer reflected more on the
Covid crisis than the [last] one because perhaps in the last one we still had
the expectation that in a moment the fans would be back [but fans did not
return in full at all last season].
“Now there are still fears around the world about the
negatives of that so it was a bit of a conservative summer, not only in
England, in all the world. The different crises, the TV crisis in France, the
situation in Spain with the salary caps, people were trying more to get players
they don’t need out, than players they need in.
“When you analyse the big, big movements, with Messi, Sergio
Ramos, there is like a domino situation.”
The Brazilian FA may yet lodge an official FIFA complaint
against Premier League clubs who have blocked players from heading away on
international duty.
Leeds United's Raphinha is among nine players based in
England that were stopped from travelling to Brazil to represent their nation
in the current international break.
Top flight teams - barring Aston Villa who struck a deal
with Argentina for two of their squad members - halted any travel to South
America due to Brazil being on the UK's Covid 'red list', meaning a 10-day
quarantine on return would have been mandatory.
According to a report in the Mail, the Brazilian FA may
lodge a complaint which could results in players called up banned from playing
for their clubs five days after the international break - meaning nine
English-based Brazil players could miss the first Premier League game back next
week.
It is yet to be seen whether this will be implemented or not
and whether any complaint will be officially lodged.
