Everything Jesse Marsch said on Leeds United transfers, not ‘suffocating’ strikers and Southampton

I just want to start on the injury front like normal. We've had a lot more guys in training this week. So Adam, Liam and Luis are training and are eligible for the weekend. Still, Junior's probably a couple of weeks behind. The same with Luke Ayling, although he had a visit to a surgeon down in London, and the surgeon said that he's ahead of schedule and looking really good and it just needs a little bit more time. And then Stuart Dallas, I saw on the pitch today, moving around a little bit. So that was an exciting moment for us and then Dani van den Heuvel is still working on his neck but looking positive as well. So we've got more options this week, which is what we felt would be the case last week.

What about Luis, a big step forward for him?

So when he picked up the hamstring injury, it was from a contact, which is not the same as when it's from a non contact, right. And then what the recovery is like can be different as well. So we've been cautious with him, but he's felt so good that we introduced him in training and then he was like a neutral player one day and then yesterday he was all in and he looks fantastic. So he's obviously not 100% fit, but I still think there's a good possibility that he can help us with with limited minutes.

Are you planning to change things around?

No, I think first of all, you know, clearly our focus is on this match and how important it is and staying in the moment is always really important. But, even watching now the [cup] draw last night and knowing that in two weeks we have five matches in two weeks, that we have a full roster squad available of guys that can that can be ready to perform at every moment. That will be important. And so we purposely have tried to build more depth into our squad for moments like this. And I always get excited when guys get opportunities because everyone here works really hard and everyone deserves chances and it's just about finding the right moments.

This game [Southampton] last year was disappointing - what is the approach?

For us in general. I don't think we've changed too much on the week. We went through the game against Wolves and we talked about the things that we thought we could have done better and how it applies to what Southampton will be. We're not overly satisfied with just the three points in the first match. Obviously it was a good first step but we know we have a lot of work to do and I think the mentality of the group to improve, get better and seize every moment is definitely there. And for me personally I know that going down to Southampton won't be easy, that it's going to be very hot and that will be a factor in the match. And so we have to manage that well. And then we have to know that for a club like us where we are right now, every game in this league is a massive challenge and we have to treat it as such. So, we're not getting ahead of ourselves and we know how important each match is and certainly in the moment now this match and if we can find a way to come away with something out of Southampton that'll help us keep momentum moving in the right direction.

How has the heat affected or limited training?

One thing about football in the US or sport in the US in the summer is it's hot. It's always hot, it's blistering. And so there are things that I've learned about how to handle fatigue, heat and managing matches that way, when I was in New York the discussion was always well 'can you play pressing football in the heat in the summer?' And actually our record during matches that was over 90 degrees or 85 - which is like 30 degrees 28 degrees here - was really, really strong. So, it's about being aggressive in the right moments. It'll be about managing the mentally what the fatigue will be. And then making sure that the players that we bring off the bench will be ready to go. So this I think is a moment where five subs if we use them the right way can be really impactful and helpful in the match.

Have you had much discussion with the owners this summer?

mean, I would say Andrea and Paraag had a really good talk with the team last week Friday. I always when it comes to the way I think about ownership. I always like having the energy of the owners around the team because I think when they see the passion of the owners, they realise that they're not just investors, but they're teammates. And so I think that that's definitely the case with Andrea and when the 49ers come and so I think they're really good people. I think they're really supportive of Andrea and they have a really good relationship with him. And there's real symmetry to how we do everything. They are not as much a part of the daily routine of what we're doing here as a team and as a club but when they come for sure they're still a big part of our family. So yeah, that's how I would describe that

Brenden Aaronson made a fantastic started his career. Is he still claiming the goal?

Yes. Which if you look at it, I do think it hits him in the leg. So I don't know if they want to change it or whatever. But yeah, I think Brenden showed his qualities and in a similar way that he showed them all preseason. Speaking to all the new players who hadn't played in a Prem match yet, they all acknowledge the fact that the level is very high and the demands are very high. But they all enjoyed the challenge. And Brenden, I think is one of those so you know, physically managing the game, the pace of the game, the demands, tactically being sharp and clear and committing to the match, in all ways will continue to be a challenge in the games in this league. But all four of those guys, including Brenden, and I've already spoken about what a good learner he is, and how adaptable he is. But I think all four guys are gonna get better and better. And that's the goal for the entire group and the team.

First taste of a transfer window here in England in the Premier League. Is it different from abroad?

Yeah, I would say listen, everything here the the media attention is 10 times what it is at most places, right, which lets you know, it's important. But for me, it's about just having a plan. And then having and working with the people in the club, in the ownership to execute the plan. And I'm thankful that Andrea has supported our ideas so heavily. And I think that also the discussions, the challenging of each other, the finding a way to come to exactly what we agree what the plan is, and then executing the plan has been at the highest level that I've been a part of. So I'm very thankful, because one thing I don't like is when they say 'my transfers', right? There are our transfers, we work through this together and I know it seems like their mine because some of the players have played for me before, but please don't print that. Print that it's the Leeds United transfers. And it's the leadership of Leeds United that are making these decisions. And I think that in that case, why I think it's important is because every transfer, every player has varying success. Some come in and have a really start really well and continue so some take a little bit more time. But it's really important that in the process that there's no one person that's responsible for any success or failure based on on anything that might happen and that we give every player in every decision a chance to thrive and succeed the best that they can. So you have to be a team player in this business. And I've appreciated the fact that here working with Andrea, working with Victor and with Angus that that we are really close and really aligned with a lot of things.

Are you still active in the market?

I think we've done I would say this, we're always actively thinking. We've done a really good job of acting early, and then giving the best these players the best chance to integrate as smoothly and quickly as possible. And it now puts us in a position where as we're starting our season and evaluating our performances, we can look more carefully at exactly what we might need moving forward. So I think that we are being very aggressive in evaluating what's out there. And then again, I said this after the match, really trying to find the right fit more than just adding a position or a number or a player, really trying to make sure that every decision we make is the right decision.

How much difference does it make getting that first three points in the first game in terms of going forward and what would it be like to get to get six already out of two games in terms of like a platform to launch from?

Yeah. Well the three points was I think really important for the guys to feel the positive momentum and energy and, and be validated for the work. It also for me allows us to be a little bit more critical and to really make sure that we're looking at when things were good, what things were we need to improve on, which we tried to do and then to see if we can apply that at a high level again at Southampton and the goal will be to just even regardless of results, try to move ourselves forward in every moment in every match, in every week. So I think we did that well in preseason. I think Wolves was a much better representation of where we're trying to move our team in terms of tactically and style of play and everything but there's still so much work to be done.

Dan James back in the group this week, how much of a boost is that?

Dan played 90 minutes in the 21s game against Derby, and I thought he thought he played well. And so he's fit, He's strong. He's ready to go. I think it'll be a big option for for us to have him come from the bench. So that's a guy that's 100% ready and I think that's the role that we'll use him in for this weekend. And then Dan will continue to integrate and we'll find moments for him to be also on the pitch from the start because he's a really important player for us, has a lot of flexibility and quality and so yeah, excited to integrate Dan more and more and we tried to get the balance right in preseason where he was with the first team in some matches, but also to give opportunities for other guys to work toward being prepared for the first match. But now you know, I think Dan's ready.

Surprising to hear Dallas is on the pitches moving about. So we don't get carried away. Can you give us some context as to what that means?

Yeah, I think it's much too early to start talking about the prognosis and a timetable for Stuart but any of you who knows Stuart know that his energy and his positivity and his personality is so amazing. And the way that he applies that even to this situation like you see him suffering when he's got the electrodes on his legs, cranking it as absolutely high as he can, and he only knows how to go 1,000%. And so he's learning a little bit how to manage this because injury like that can go up and down. But he's been up still a big presence in the team. He's here every day, and he wants to be around the team as much as possible. And he still has such a positive impact on the on the group. So yeah, I think because of all those personality traits, it gives him a really good chance to come back as good as ever. So that's what we're all pushing and hoping for.

Mateo Joseph made a lot of headlines last week. Can you give us more information on Mateo and his progression?

I think Mateo has developed a lot since I've been here. He understands pressing and he understands how to play with intensity. He also has quality and a goal scoring knack. So I think because of his intelligence because of his quality, and because of his adaptation, he has potential to be a really important player here. So I think yeah, the four-goal match obviously is a big statement. But I think you know, I think the 21s are built to have a good season. And I think Skubes [Michael Skubala] is doing a really good job with them. That's what we call Michael Skubala so that everyone knows that's Skubes. He's done a good job already. I think he's been eager to learn from what we're trying to achieve here. And I think the work and the symmetry of us and what we've done together has been we've had a really good start.

Do you see any areas of the team that are light as it stands?

We've said a long time that we've been evaluating for the right striker. But Patrick being fully fit obviously helps us in that area. We also have some flexibility with you know, Rodrigo can play there. And Dan can play there at times but yeah, I mean, I think that we know we have some good - again with with Mateo who we just spoke about, with Sonny Perkins - we have some good young strikers, and obviously Joffy but Joffy are considered part of the first group. We have some good young strikers so a lot of it is also trying to look at from a profile, what age do we want and that we don't want to suffocate some of them having opportunities moving forward in the next one to three years. So it's trying to find the right age profile and the right player profile and most importantly, the right person to come into the team. And as striker that's not so easy. That's not so easy. The way that I like to play the game. We ask a lot from the strikers to work hard to press, it's a very demanding position in the way that I like to play. So we're trying to find the right one.

Brought in Joel Robles - what's the goalkeeper situation?

Yeah, I think the role for Joel is to really help support Illan and Kris but to compete with them and to push them every day. You know, obviously, our belief in Illan is at the highest level and even I think with the performance that he had against Wolves it says everything. I think he's grown a lot and since I've been here, I've challenged him to become more of a leader more of a vocal presence. And he's responding really well to that. And I think experience like Joel's can help him, that relationship will be important, then the goal is to have Kris as the number two, but he has to earn it. Right and so in this situation, I think it's healthy competition. I think Joel we've already we've seen is a quality goalkeeper, but more importantly, a very good person. He's here for all the right reasons, which was really important to us. And he knows, I've been very open with him with the other two goalkeepers and with the entire team, you know, that Joel is not just to support them, but to push them, but to do it in a way where the goalkeeper group along with Marcos [Abad] is really strong and really united and so far, I think that they've done that at a really high level.