Mauricio Pochettino's funny story about how he met ex-Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa

Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino once told a strange story about his mentor and former Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa. It has been two years since Bielsa departed Elland Road, leaving as a legend.

The Argentine spent the best part of four years in charge of Leeds, taking them back to the Premier League and - in the short-term - establishing them there. Things took a bad turn late on, with Bielsa getting the boot after a disappointing run of form, but he will forever be remembered as a club legend and forever welcome back in this part of Yorkshire, though he is currently busy coaching the Uruguay national team.

Leeds face Chelsea on Wednesday, and Blues boss Pochettino is a lifelong friend of Bielsa's. The Chelsea boss was scouted as a young player by Bielsa and taken into the Newell's Old Boys academy. Recalling how that scouting process unfolded, Pochettino once told ESPN Brasil: "One night, at one in the morning, he came to my house, knocked on the door and wanted to see a 13-year-old boy,” Mauricio Pochettino told ESPN Brasil’s Natali Gedra. “He tried to convince my parents to let me travel 200km, to Rosario, which was the distance from my city, Murphy. He wanted to see my legs! At this time of the morning, he would have to be a little… he had to make my parents dream. Then he said: ‘these legs look like those of a very good player’. That was a good lie, no bad intentions.”

Speaking about Bielsa more generally, Pochettino added: "For me, he’s a person I will always admire. People call him ‘El Loco Bielsa’, but for me, he is not crazy at all. For me, he’s a genius. A person with charisma and a personality very different from us normal coaches, and that’s what makes him special.”