600 days of Marcelo Bielsa at Leeds United and Gjanni Alioski still sees a daily improvement

Gjanni Alioski says Marcelo Bielsa is still getting a daily improvement from him at Leeds United (Pic: Bruce Rollinson)

Alioski made his 101st Championship start for the Whites on Saturday at Elland Road. Sixty-one of those have come during Bielsa’s tenure. The 27-year-old is grateful to his boss for the education he receives at Thorp Arch every day.

“I improve something every day,” said Alioski.

“This is a coach that one day you are going to miss and you need to enjoy it and to try and take in every bit of information because this really helps you in the game, in the training and when you are home and you are really thinking about things and it is in your head. I think every player learns a lot and we need to say also thank you that we have a coach like this because every time we can improve something.”

Alioski arrived at Leeds 11 months prior to Bielsa.

He started 40 Championship games under Thomas Christiansen and his replacement Paul Heckingbottom, as United finished 13th, 15 points off the play-off positions.

The Bielsa era has brought 44 wins and 16 draws from 84 outings and two promotion bids. Last season Leeds finished third and ahead of a trip to Nottingham Forest on Saturday they sit second, three points ahead of third-placed Fulham.

The left sided utility player can give some insight into how the club has improved over his time as a White.

Again, he credits his current coach.

“It’s easy to say,” said the North Macedonian international.

“Of course there have been changes around Leeds, the boss (Andrea Radrizzani) and everything but since I arrived I think it’s the coach Marcelo Bielsa.

“He lets the team dream again and we see the team.

“I arrived two and a half years ago under Thomas Christiansen and it’s mostly the same team.

“A coach like Marcelo Bielsa has kept the same team but everybody can see how Leeds has changed and how we have improved with him.

“And I think the secret is mainly hard work.

“The players listen to him, they do the work, they have the concentration and they have the adaptation to do the work and everything.

“But if you are answering the question of what has improved and how I think it is mainly Marcelo Bielsa.”