The Leeds United Marcelo Bielsa conundrum and why Elland Road will tear up for special moment — YEP 13/4/24

There won't be a dry eye in the house at Elland Road this afternoon when Leeds United says thank you to Stuart Dallas.

By Graham Smyth

There's an argument to be made that the Ulsterman, who will walk out onto the pitch at half-time of the game against Blackburn Rovers, will retire a Premier League player. His last game was in the top flight, after all, in a season that ended in survival rather than relegation. Having played such a key role, in numerous positions, for Marcelo Bielsa's Championship title winners, Dallas went on to prove, beyond doubt, that he belonged at the highest level. This week he laid a huge deal of credit for that at the feet of Elland Road's favourite bespectacled Argentine. But did Bielsa make Dallas a Premier League player, or did Dallas make Bielsa a Premier League manager? At times in football it's difficult to convince that two things can be true at once, but on this occasion it's quite simple. The Northern Ireland international was transformed by Bielsa's methods and, in turn, gave absolutely everything he had in service to his head coach. The end result, for both men, was ascension to the highest level. Neither, it now transpires, got the ending they deserved at Elland Road.

Long before the summer of 2020 when a trophy was lifted in a near-empty stadium, Elland Road had already taken Dallas to heart. Lots of players get to play for Leeds United, many of them get Leeds United and some have what it takes to do the club justice with their ability and work ethic. A few represent Leeds so well, on and off the pitch, that they burrow deep into the affections of the fanbase. Dallas is one of those. What he means to Leeds fans is akin to what he means to Northern Ireland fans. What he means to Leeds fans from across the water is something else altogether. Remember the lads who brought a multipack of Tayto crisps with them to Elland Road to present to him at full-time? A Northern Irish player in the Premier League is cause for celebration, because it just doesn't happen for that many. It's special. Similarly, Northern Irish qualification for a major tournament, something Dallas experienced in 2016, gives an entire generation special memories to cherish. As he said this week, nothing gave him more pride than pulling on the green and white and you could tell, in his performances. That's why he's special, to his people.

The deluge of messages and tributes this week came from far and wide, though, and some of those that will mean the most are the ones from his peers. He's popular for a reason, a nice guy, yes, but a bit of a comedian too. "The vultures are here," was one of his greetings for the press at Thorp Arch. Or: "Stuart Dallas to Real Madrid," on transfer deadline day. As this correspondent attempted to record a live video from the club's training camp in Spain he wondered aloud: "Who's he talking to?" At Windsor Park, having been fetched for a YEP interview after a Northern Ireland fixture he lamented: "I thought I'd given you the slip." Then there was his none-too-gentle checking of the size of Raphinha's testicles after the Brazilian's match-winning penalty against Crystal Palace. Good craic. By his own admission this week, he enjoys a drink when appropriate. Never was that more obvious, or funnier, than when he reported for training in no fit state to run the morning after promotion was secured, having mistakenly believed there would be no running. He and his team-mates were caught mucking around and serenading Bielsa's arrival at Thorp Arch. The laughter stopped when Benoit Delaval ordered them to the running track.

There's a serious, sentimental side to Dallas too. There are countless stories of those he helped, those to whom he gave special experiences at Thorp Arch and Elland Road and those he reached out to, unprompted, in times of need. Numerous team-mates have talked up his generosity. Georginio Rutter recently revealed Dallas was among the most supportive during his difficult introduction to English football, and the latter's refusal to wear the bitter frustration of his injury hell had a motivational impact on the Frenchman.

You can be a nice guy and earn popularity in football but you have to be a good player, too. Dallas had no academy upbringing, came to England from a part-time Irish League background and grew slowly, but steadily until, under Bielsa, he flourished. The generosity Bielsa loved in Dallas' game, the third-man runs or defensive work, was matched by the quality he showed in memorable moments. That blaster at Old Trafford. The deft top corner finish in that madcap 5-4 win at Birmingham City. Silencing the hyenas on the Manchester City substitutes bench with that impossible winner. Even the toe poke against Southampton was a thing of beauty, in its own way, because it was scored with an injured toe.

All of this goes some way to explaining why today will be such an emotional one. There were tears when he stood up in front of his team-mates on Wednesday morning to announce his retirement. There were tears for fans who later watched the video and saw Liam Cooper rushing to his best mate's side to support him. There will be tears today when he walks out with his family for a moment of mutual appreciation.

Nothing that happens in the Blackburn Rovers game, or any of the final four games for that matter, will take away from what Dallas and Leeds United mean to one another. But wouldn't it be nice and oh so fitting if the players fit and available to do what he still craves doing, put in performances that did his time at Leeds justice? The hairs on the back of their necks should have stood to attention when he told them not to give up the position they have earned this season. A second round of promotion drinks is the very least he deserves. Every player goes onto the pitch with their own individual motivations - they do it for themselves and their love of the game, for family members, for managers and for fans. Leeds will do it for Dallas. The Cookstown Cafu, born and bred in our wee country but adopted in God’s own county. He's Leeds, so he is.