Ex-Leeds United star Raphinha weighs in on Marcelo Bielsa criticism with Elland Road ups and downs — YEP 9/10/24

By Graham Smyth

Ex-Leeds United star Raphinha has weighed in on criticism of Marcelo Bielsa’s management with details of his relationship with the Argentine during their Elland Road days.

Bielsa has won 10 and drawn seven of his 20 games in charge of Uruguay since his May 2023 appointment. They sit third in the World Cup qualifying table, five points clear of Brazil and just three behind leaders Argentina. The former Leeds head coach steered La Celeste to the semi-final of the Copa America after knocking out Brazil.

But Luis Suarez has hit out at Bielsa's man management, sparking a debate that has drawn in current national team players to either agree with the Uruguay legend, who recently retired from international football, or to suggest the situation is better dealt with behind closed doors.

Suarez spoke out about Bielsa’s approach to the Copa America, particularly his treatment of winger Agustín Canobbio, who played just one minute of the tournament despite providing 15 goal-scoring contributions to his club last season.

“In the Copa América there were situations that hurt me, which I did not say for the sake of coexistence,” Suarez told ‘De fútbol se habla así’. “I support Canobbio for what happened. On many days he made him do exercises with the players who were sparring and that is a complete lack of respect. I had a five-minute chat with Bielsa, speaking as a group leader, and at the end he only replied, ‘Thank you very much’. Tomorrow, I ask people not to take it out on the players if something goes wrong. Bielsa has separated the whole group, even in the way they train.”

Real Madrid's Federico Valverde was asked about Suarez’s statement and said: "There are things that are indeed true, and there’s no need to deny anything. Honesty is paramount in this matter. But it is also true that it is better to discuss problems within the team and with the person involved before bringing them to the media.” José Giménez, meanwhile, admitted to being surprised by Suarez' statement, adding: "There were things that we didn't feel comfortable with, but we always supported and were 100 percent behind the coach. This was demonstrated in all the games we played."

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Raphinha has now been asked for his experience of the man who guided Leeds to the Premier League in 2020. The winger arrived later that year and enjoyed two impressive seasons in the English top flight. Bielsa once said of Raphinha that there was very little he could add to the Brazilian's game and Raphinha has previously gone on record with his gratitude for the coach for helping him make it to international level.

But while Raphinha also admits that it was not always harmonious between the two, he has reiterated the appreciation he has for Bielsa's part in developing him as a player.

The Barcelona star told Globo: "In my opinion, I think everyone has a difficult side to deal with, they have a very complicated side to dealing with people or situations. I guess, in my opinion, everyone is different. Everyone has difficulty managing something at a certain point. I don’t know what happens in the Uruguay team, what I know is what happened to me in Leeds.

“I had good times and bad times with him, naturally, like a big family, for example. I was with a lot of people inside the house, naturally conflicts will happen, good times and bad times will happen. I believe that within football, in a club, in a national team, it ends up being the same. There are moments that are good, there are moments that are not so good.

“Personally, I had my good moments and my bad moments with him, but I can only be grateful for everything I am today, for almost everything I am today. Where I am today was thanks to him.

“I just have to thank him for everything I experienced with him in these two years. It was a year and a half that I lived with him. We had our frictions; we had our fights. Some uglier than others, but we had a lot of good moments too. As I told you, I think that inside your house not everything is roses.”