Southampton v Leeds United: Marcelo Bielsa press conference on international leave, Leicester City inspiration and 'burnout'

ALL the latest news as Leeds United head coach Marcelo Bielsa faces the media ahead of Tuesday evening's Premier League clash against Southampton at St Mary's.
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Leeds are looking to record three consecutive victories for the second time this season on the back of a 3-1 win at home to Tottenham Hotspur and Saturday's 4-0 triumph at Burnley.

Bielsa will be speaking to the media at 9am and all the latest news will follow here after the press conference's conclusion.

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On Saturday's incident, can you shed any more light now that we know there is a ref's report?

BACK TO IT: Leeds United and boss Marcelo Bielsa, above, are heading for Southampton, fresh from Saturday's 4-0 romp at Burnley. Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images.BACK TO IT: Leeds United and boss Marcelo Bielsa, above, are heading for Southampton, fresh from Saturday's 4-0 romp at Burnley. Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images.
BACK TO IT: Leeds United and boss Marcelo Bielsa, above, are heading for Southampton, fresh from Saturday's 4-0 romp at Burnley. Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images.

"It's the same information that you have available to you in the media. The incident has been photographed and been described also. At the moment I saw there was an issue but I didn't observe the details. And that's why I didn't make any commentaries in the post match press conference. And that precaution was the correct one because I couldn't give an opinion on something I didn't see."

Team news - Koch and Hernandez?

"Koch has been given early leave with the potential for him to be called up or not called up to the German national team. The injury that he has is not important and we didn't want to take the risk of him playing and making it worse so we anticipate his holidays and in the same way with Klich. In this case he wasn't injured but we thought we could anticipate his holidays one week and that's why we took that decision. And with relation to Pablo we are going to see in training how he is."

Koch on leave then for Germany?

"In no way did I mean to say that. I don't know whether he is going to be called up to the German national team or not. What I did want to say is that we anticipated one week of his holidays, it is not linked to whether he is going to be called up or not to the German national team. It's just that he has a small niggle and we didn't want to take or run the risk of a small niggle being aggravated into something big."

On fans coming back

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"In England they should feel privileged that they are able to partially resolve this situation and of course it is great to have the fans back. Even if it is partially, it is a situation that very few countries are able to have this."

1 defeat in 9 and running stats up, have the physical demands of Championship served you well for the Premier?

"Three years working with a stable group is an advantage. And to have been able to have been part of a long Championship also helps. Now that you have asked me about it I want to give recognition to Benoit Delaval who is the fitness coach and all the group who is being led by Rob Price who is in charge of medical staff and recovery of the players. Those two structures that are very developed in the club, these things are linked to the physical activity of the players, the loads and the health, they have done a very valuable job. They are professionals who are very up to date and very capable. And them being able to take advantage of a good disposition of the players to be able to do such good things."

On Saints

"They are a team who are in a different position in the table with regards to the performances that they have, they have a group of players who are very capable. And they didn't finish higher up in the table because they had a series of nine or ten games which was negative but the level of the team is superior to the position they find themselves in in the table."

Are Leicester an inspiration after their FA Cup win?

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"What they have achieved is evidence of the great things they have achieved. To have won the Premier League and the FA Cup the other day is a level that very few teams can have. But this team has managed to do it. And apart from that they did it so deservedly. And it is within a structure that is well thought out because they have sold some of their best players and invested a lot in tools for the improvement of the players and the preparation. One of the things that shows evolution from the teams that don't have such a high income is to find players who can grow and develop and to have the tools to be able to work with them in the best way possible. I am referring to the installation that they have and the professionals around and that circle virtue is something that the club has and has shown."

On Klich - international leave for him too then and any others?

"No. He is not injured. The evolutions that I make over the campaign are for the needs of each player and in the case of Klich the decision I made I think was the most favourable one for him."

On loanees - anyone impressed in particular?

"I have followed all of the performances of each of them and I am conscious of the evolution that they have and how I can imagine the immediate future for them. But those types of evaluations and decisions are taken not only after their season but after Leeds United's season has finished."

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Does the team's strong finish show that it is wrong to say that Leeds burn out at the end of the season - have you shown that is a myth?

"In relation to that question you can see that there are evaluations that are very clear for each team at the end of the season. And the physical performance is not only linked to the physical preparation but how the mind gives potential to those resources. That's to say that when a team runs there is a reflection of how the body is and how the mind is and those values are accessible to all the world so that the affirmations that are made over that particular subject, you can verify them with the data. We have always had the same physical performance in all the years that we have been here and in my career in general. That has to do with the capacity of the people that I have worked with in that area so if there is a presumption like you say, it is in the data where you can verify if those comments are correct or not. But we all know that the evaluations are always made with regards to the results and the results don't necessarily measure the capacities. Sometimes you achieve results where the capacities are not decisive and obtain results without the capacities being at their maximum, or you can not get the result even though you have made a very high effort so when there are results the data is another thing to look at. And so when a team doesn't have good results at the end of the campaign, that doesn't mean it is to do with that particular subject. That's why the affirmations which can be verified with data should be adjusted to the interpretation of those values."

Are you looking forward to a holiday and what are your plans?

"Nothing in particular."

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Thank you Laura Collins

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