Jesse Marsch accuses ex-Leeds chief Andrea Radrizzani of 'losing his nerve' — Mail 20/12/23
Jesse Marsch accuses ex-Leeds chief Andrea Radrizzani of 'losing his nerve' as former boss opens up on his sacking, working with Erling Haaland... and why he's snubbed interest from Saudi Arabia and the Championship
By Jake Nisse
Jesse Marsch left Leeds in February with the club mired in a
relegation fight
He spoke to Mail Sport on his time there, his future plans
and much more
Twelve years, five coaching jobs and one unwanted nickname
later, Jesse Marsch is taking a moment to breathe.
It's been 10 months since he was fired by Leeds and, for the
first time in a long time, he's content to recharge and recalibrate.
'Where I'm at in my life right now... I don't need a job,'
he tells Mail Sport in an exclusive interview. 'My need is to find the right
job and the right situation and the right people.'
Marsch has had no shortage of interest: he came close to
joining Leicester and Southampton earlier this year and has had 'a lot of
discussions' with clubs in the Championship as well as elsewhere in Europe.
Some national teams are said to be poking around, too. He even considered jobs
in Saudi Arabia, but has been keeping one eye on potential openings in England.
A lot has changed for the Wisconsin native since he departed
Yorkshire.
The 50-year-old moved to Italy with his family, joined CBS
Sports as a Champions League analyst and now has a podcast with the network as
well.
Marsch was replaced by Javi Gracia in February, with the
club above the relegation zone on goal difference alone, after a run of four
wins in 20 league games. For him, though, the blame for Leeds' relegation lies
at the feet of Andrea Radrizzani.
'What went wrong is we were a couple results away from
really getting everything moving in the right direction, and I believe that
everything was already moving the right direction,' he says, calling Leeds an
'incredible club.'
'But in the end, the owner just lost his nerve. And he paid
the price for it.'
Marsch's year in England certainly brought mixed fortunes.
May 2022 saw a dramatic, final-day escape from relegation
but 'Ted Lasso' jibes persisted throughout, with a post-match huddle and his
use of Gandhi and Mother Theresa quotes causing some eyes to roll in England.
Marsch nevertheless holds no regrets about brandishing his
unmistakably American attitude in the Premier League.
'I actually think that being myself helped me,' he says. 'I
think that, in the end, the limiting factor was that we didn't get the results
that we, frankly, should have often got.'
Marsch adds: 'There's things that come with doing this
job... whether it's internal, external language, barriers, experiences. And I
don't look at anything as barriers. I look at everything as opportunities. If I
go to a new country, I want to acclimate. I want to learn languages, I want to
learn cultures.
'I want to understand why the people for certain clubs think
a certain way, I want to represent that the right way in the way that that we
play football, I always want to also be true to myself. I don't want to ever
play boring football.'
Marsch's footballing education and his penchant for a
frenetic, high-pressing style was forged within the Red Bull system. He starred
as head coach for the group's New York side in Major League Soccer before
taking the same role at Salzburg and later Leipzig.
It was in Austria that Marsch spent six months working with
Erling Haaland. The striker soon earned a move to Borussia Dortmund but he hung
around long enough to leave a mark on his former coach.
In mid-2019, the forward headed to the Under-20 World Cup
with Norway, where he scored a record nine goals in a single game against
Honduras. Haaland had earned a summer break but instead preferred to report
early for preseason training.
'Erling asked to come back after 10 days and I was reluctant
to say yes. But he was young and he was eager to get into the team,' Marsch
recalls.
'That was a signal to me that this kid is serious. And then
it was probably 20 minutes into the first training session where you could see
his energy, his talent, his mobility, his power, his football mind.'
Now, as one of three voices on 'Call It What You Want' - the
podcast he co-hosts with former US internationals Charlie Davies and Jimmy
Conrad - Marsch can enjoy stars such as Haaland from a comfier vantage point
than the bench.
What drew him to the microphone as he plots his next move?
'I'm not really sure,' he admits. 'I thought it was a chance
for me to enjoy some banter and entertainment about football because I'm still
football crazy, and yet still try to mix in good content about what's actually
happening with these players.
'What their experiences are like and try to translate from
my experiences: what are the potential things that those guys are going through
with their adventures in Europe?
'I'm still looking forward to being on the touchline again
to being involved with teams and players again,' he added. 'So, I think this is
a way to just keep me active.'
Marsch may be living in Italy now - Tuscany, to be specific
- but he still keeps tabs on soccer back home. And he's not alone after Lionel
Messi made his stunning move to Inter Miami last summer.
MLS won't be stealing local eyes from Serie A anytime soon,
but Marsch believes it is seeping into the European consciousness. He recalls
seeing Messi's pink Miami shirt alongside traditional Italian kits during a
recent trip to Pisa.
'The biggest challenge for MLS is not the fans, is not the
investment. It's not the level of play. It's geographic in many ways - (it's) a
big world apart from where we are here in Europe,' he says. '(But) I think that
people and players and coaches and everyone in football is realizing that that
the league is coming alive.'
It can be easy to forget that Marsch, who has coached two
clubs in the Champions League and led one of England's biggest clubs, began his
professional soccer journey in the humble first generation of MLS.
But, as he takes some time away from management, it's clear
he cherishes the journey that's brought him to this juncture.
'To have a break, where I can recharge, dedicate myself to
the things that are important in my life, so that I make sure when I get back
in then I'm fully ready in every way, I think has been really good and really
important for me,' he says.
