'Honesty is paramount' - Ex-Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa criticism backed up by another player

Former Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa came under fire recently after Uruguay icon Luis Suarez revealed how the coach has ‘separated’ the national team players and ‘hurt him’ during the recent Copa América.

After leaving Elland Road in 2022, Bielsa went more than a year without a new role, before he was appointed manager of the Uruguay national team in May 2023. Since his arrival, the Argentine has earned praise for the style of play he has implemented within the squad, especially after finishing third in the Copa América earlier this summer.

La Celeste were denied a place in the final after Colombia edged through in a 1-0 clash that saw a sending off for both teams. Uruguay beat Canada on penalties after a 2-2 draw to take their tenth bronze medal finish in their history.

However, Suarez recently spoke out about Bielsa’s approach to the tournament, 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.”

The Inter Miami star’s bombshell comments have been backed up by compatriot Federico Valverde, who says that ‘there are things that are true’ in what he has said. The Real Madrid midfielder was asked about Suarez’s lstatement following their La Liga win over Villarreal at the weekend.

“There are things that are indeed true, and there’s no need to deny anything. Honesty is paramount in this matter,” Valverde said during a post-match press conference. “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.”

While Valverde has supported Suarez’s comments, José Giménez has revealed that the Uruguay camp were ‘not aware’ his former teammate’s statement has been issued as ‘a consensual one’.

“I was very surprised that they said that Suarez's statement was a consensual one, we were not aware of it. We will discuss it behind closed doors,” the 29-year-old said (via X account @Misticauruguaya). “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.

There’s never been a better time to sign up to Inside Elland Road with Graham Smyth - offering unrivalled and in-depth coverage of Leeds United

“Many may think it's chaos, but I see an opportunity to solve it. The best thing is to be in harmony, happy, and all well, because that's the best thing there is to wear the Uruguayan national team.”