Marcelo Bielsa a bag of nerves but Leeds United boss explains how his players can drive out fear in Premier League

Confidence and togetherness will keep nerves at bay for Leeds United, if not their head coach Marcelo Bielsa, as the big games keep coming thick and fast in the Premier League.
NERVOUS ENERGY - Marcelo Bielsa admits to getting nervous before every game but believes his Leeds United players were 'serene' at Anfield against Liverpool. Pic: GettyNERVOUS ENERGY - Marcelo Bielsa admits to getting nervous before every game but believes his Leeds United players were 'serene' at Anfield against Liverpool. Pic: Getty
NERVOUS ENERGY - Marcelo Bielsa admits to getting nervous before every game but believes his Leeds United players were 'serene' at Anfield against Liverpool. Pic: Getty

The Whites boss worries about each and every fixture and, if he doesn’t, he worries about why he isn’t worrying.

“I always get nervous prior to playing, I worry when I’m not scared or nervous,” he said before his men went to Liverpool on Saturday and played a full part in a 4-3 thriller that earned them top-flight respect, if not a point.

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It was an historic occasion, the club’s first Premier League game since 2004 and, for many of the players, a first-ever taste of the game at the very top level.

It wasn’t just youngsters like Pascal Struijk and Kalvin Phillips who made their Premier League debuts, Luke Ayling and Mateusz Klich both impressed in their first top-flight appearance, at the ages of 29 and 30 respectively.

Not every player sparkled, but every player contributed to a team performance that took Leeds to within two minutes of a famous point.

And there were no nerves on display. Ayling was a picture of composure as he nutmegged Sadio Mané, Klich was cool personified as he volleyed in Leeds’ third goal. Twenty-one-year-old Struijk - ‘clearly’ one of the Whites’ better players in Bielsa’s estimation - settled into the game impressively against a truly world-class attack.

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“The players were calm, they played a serene game and went into the game confident,” said Bielsa at full-time.

The Argentine might suffer from nerves himself but believes his players can drive out fear with confidence.

Leeds had plenty of reasons to be confident going into the new season, even before taking on the champions and holding their own. Two years together under Bielsa and a Championship title have given them a swagger on the ball that was present at Anfield.

And the success they had against Jurgen Klopp’s men, particularly going forward, with the very same principles that have taken them to the Premier League, should only add to their self-belief.

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“Confidence means that you shouldn’t be afraid,” said Bielsa.

And knowing exactly what each of their team-mates can do, after all the games together and all the Wednesday-afternoon murderball sessions they have endured as a group, in Bielsa’s will-drilled system, is what gave them the freedom to play their football at Anfield.

“The team-mates help each other not to be nervous,” said Bielsa.

“When you know that if you make a mistake your teammates are there to back you up, it gives you an extra confidence and it liberates you.”

If Bielsa is right, then it stands to reason that nerves should only be a problem for him and him alone, as the Whites’ Premier League return unfolds.

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