Marcelo Bielsa's words of advice prove insufficient as Leeds United transfer possibility increases

The prospect of a West Yorkshire Premier League derby next season was spurned yesterday as Huddersfield Town lost out to Nottingham Forest in the Championship play-off final.

Levi Colwill's inadvertent own goal helped Forest earn promotion in a 1-0 win at Wembley, meaning they will play top flight football for the first time since 1999.

Former Leeds United coach Carlos Corberan saw his Terriers side denied two penalties during the match but maintained his composure in post-match interviews, focusing on the performance and commending his players.

Defeat for Huddersfield comes as a blow to Terriers fans who had enjoyed an unexpectedly impressive campaign with a squad largely made up of free transfers, loanees and cheap additions.

One of the club's primary assets Lewis O'Brien has been a transfer target of Leeds United's for some time.

Promotion to the Premier League would have complicated the Whites' interest as Huddersfield's hand in negotiations would have been strengthened by top flight status.

Given his performances over the course of 2021/22, O'Brien will not be short of suitors during the summer and Huddersfield will likely field several calls about the player's services.

Last year, Leeds were priced out of a deal for the 23-year-old who has played over 100 times for the Terriers, before O'Brien signed a contract extension until June 2025.

Reports claim O'Brien has a £10 million release clause in his Town contract, and with Leeds in desperate need of midfield reinforcements, director of football Victor Orta may now deem that a palatable fee for a player who came within 90 minutes of the Premier League.

Equally, Terriers head coach Carlos Corberan had been earmarked by supporters as a potentially successor to Marcelo Bielsa at Elland Road, prior to Jesse Marsch's arrival.

Corberan may still have a role to play in future and luring the Spaniard back from a club in the Championship poses less of a challenge than if Huddersfield were a Premier League side.

The 39-year-old's arrival pre-dated Marcelo Bielsa at Leeds but the pair worked closely before Corberan exited to take over at the John Smith's Stadium.

Bielsa is understood to have watched Huddersfield matches and discussed their play-off final task versus Nottingham Forest with Corberan prior to Sunday's defeat.

While the Argentine's words of wisdom ultimately proved insufficient, missing out on promotion does not take the gloss off Corberan's efforts throughout the 2021/22 Championship campaign.