Marcelo Bielsa ‘stance’ amid former Leeds United manager’s ‘sensational’ links and Romano verdict

Marcelo Bielsa may not have extensively spoken about his future since leaving Leeds United in February - but we still know a thing or two about his plans amid fresh links with Bournemouth and Everton.

Bielsa departed Elland Road last season as the Whites battled relegation from the Premier League, with Jesse Marsch taking over and helping Leeds secure safety. But Bielsa is still adored by United fans aplenty thanks to his success in getting the club promoted back to the top tier and almost equally for the quality of football on display during his tenure.

Since the Argentine left Leeds, there have been links with Athletic Club (aka Athletic Bilbao) and now the likes of Bournemouth have 'held talks' and Everton rumours cropped up this week as well.

On his Leeds' exit earlier this year, Bielsa said as reported by the YEP at the time: "They sacked me in February because the team had quite a prolonged series of negative results but there are two important things here: one important thing and one very important thing."

But what exactly has Bielsa said about his future options? Bielsa flirted with the possibility of joining Athletic Club and even did a presentation at presidential candidate Inaki Arechabaleta's unveiling but would only join if the aforementioned candidate won, which he did not as Ernesto Valverde was instead installed as manager. Bielsa admitted at the time that a return to the club he managed between 2011 and 2013 would have been 'a dream'.

Instead, Bielsa is now linked with Premier League jobs aplenty, with Bournemouth having reportedly 'held talks' with the 67-year-old. Sky Sports say that Bielsa is 'open to the idea of working on the new-look project on the south coast'. Meanwhile, Football Insider reported earlier this week that Everton were considering a 'sensational' move for Bielsa amid the pressure on Frank Lampard.

Furthermore, Fabrizio Romano said of Bielsa’s links with Bournemouth: “Yes, it’s a real possibility. This is true, the board discussed this with Bielsa as a fascinating and interesting idea. We know how special Bielsa is. It’s not about the trophies, when you have Bielsa at the club it is something magic.

“They are thinking of Marcelo, but an important point is that we know how slow the process is when Bielsa is involved in talks because he wants to make sure about the ideas and have full control of the ideas. You have to support him with every idea, signing and project. They are thinking of him, but it’s not at an advanced stage yet.”

It remains to be seen what happens around Bielsa's future, but one thing is for sure, Leeds' fans will be torn over seeing him in an opposition dug out at Elland Road.