"I regret" — Andrea Radrizzani makes bold Leeds United claim and drops Marcelo Bielsa hint — Football League World 24/11/24

By James Reeves

Former Leeds United owner Andrea Radrizzani has defended the work he did during his time in charge at Elland Road, and he has also hinted that he tried to bring Marcelo Bielsa back to the club before they were relegated to the Championship.

Radrizzani first became involved with Leeds when he purchased a 50% stake in the club in January 2017 before taking full ownership five months later when he bought out controversial co-owner Massimo Cellino's 50% share.

The Italian's first year as sole owner of the Whites was disappointing, and they finished 13th in the Championship table, with both Thomas Christiansen and Paul Heckingbottom failing to inspire a promotion push.

However, Radrizzani hired Bielsa as Leeds manager in June 2018, and after losing to Derby County in the play-off semi-finals in his first year in charge, the Argentinian led the club to the Championship title in the 2019-20 season, ending their 16-year Premier League exile.

Radrizzani began to give away some of his control of the Whites during their time in the top flight, with co-owners 49ers Enterprises increasing their stake to 44% in November 2021, and after results started to decline on the pitch, Bielsa was sacked in February 2022.

Jesse Marsch kept Leeds in the Premier League after replacing Bielsa, but he could not build on that success in the 2022-23 campaign, and he was sacked in February 2023, with the club going on to suffer relegation under Sam Allardyce.

That would prove to be the end of Radrizzani's time at Elland Road as he agreed a £107 million deal to sell his share to 49ers Enterprises in June 2023, and he is now the owner of Italian second division side Sampdoria.

It is fair to say that the Leeds fan base have not fully forgiven Radrizzani for his role in the club's relegation, but the 50-year-old took to social media on Sunday morning to issue a passionate defence of his work during his time in West Yorkshire.

"I hear you all. Since June 2023, I have been criticized, abused, insulted any time I say a word about anything. It doesn’t change that we (management and all club employees) invested, transformed, modernized the club and finally achieved historical promotion after 17y thanks to MB (Marcelo Bielsa)," Radrizzani wrote on X.

In response to a Whites supporter, Radrizzani later claimed that he had put the club back on the world map, and he appeared to suggest that he was keen to bring Bielsa back to Elland Road.

"MC (Massimo Cellino) did a great job to 'clean' the past debts and make the club much more sustainable.

"I developed and put it back in the map of the world (thanks to MB who set a new work ethic and we supported unconditionally with infrastructure and recruitment) …now Paraag and Co. will take Leeds to the next level.

"We can see a lot of improvements already. I had hard time but I love Leeds and want to see you joyful (these time with a full stadium). I regret MB couldn’t come back to save us as I wished, the only one who could have done it. Past is past. Let's go Leeds," Radrizzani said.

Bielsa earned legendary status among Leeds supporters after leading the club back to the Premier League, but after a series of heavy defeats left the club sitting 16th in the table, Radrizzani decided to part company with the 69-year-old in February 2022.

Bielsa returned to management when he took charge of the Uruguay national team in June 2023, but The Athletic claimed that prior to that, discussions had taken place among the Whites hierarchy about the prospect of bringing him back to the club.

Radrizzani is right to defend his record during his time at Leeds as he succeeded where many previous owners had failed in guiding the club back to the Premier League.

Bielsa will go down as one of the best managers in the club's history, and he is still revered by supporters to this day, so Radrizzani deserves huge credit for convincing him to come to Elland Road.

However, the decision to sack Bielsa was hugely controversial, and the subsequent appointment of Marsch was not well received by the Whites fan base, while Javi Gracia and Allardyce also proved to be poor choices.

Radrizzani came under fire for his lack of investment in the transfer market during the latter stages of his tenure, so his legacy is certainly mixed, and until Leeds are back in the top flight, the Italian will continue to be the subject of frustration.