Why Marcelo Bielsa's DNA is being felt throughout Leeds United's academy set-up

Delve a little deeper and the effects of Bielsa-ball are sweeping the whole club – the under-23s, the under-18s, the under-16s and even further down the age groups.

That, says 23s coach Mark Jackson, is because Bielsa’s brand is purposely being copied throughout Leeds United’s Academy to ensure talented youngsters are cherry ripe for his first team.

Jackson is responsible for those first in line through the club’s all conquering under-23s who will ply their trade in the top division of under-23s football in the forthcoming campaign.

Jackson’s side stormed to promotion as Premier League 2 Division Two champions in finishing 11 points clear of runners up Stoke City after going the whole season unbeaten at home.

The young Whites fell to only four defeats with their 24 games yielding 18 victories in addition to two draws plus a goal difference of plus 33.

Sixty two goals were netted across the campaign with many of them the result of fine free-flowing, attacking and energetic football from a team constantly looking to press.

Rather like Leeds United’s first team and that says Jackson is the whole point as part of a style of football that the 23s coach believes suits the club down to the ground.

“There’s a philosophy of how we play at first-team level and there’s no doubt about it, we mirror that,” Jackson told the YEP.

“Ultimately we are trying to prepare the players to step up to Marcelo’s team so we have to work closely with that and we have to work in the same way and that has to filter down through the age groups as well specifically the 18s and 16s in that we can prepare players for the next level.

“Whether that’s 23s going into the first team which is the big step or 18s going into 23s, or 16s going into 18s, you have got to try and make that transition as smooth as possible so we are working with the same ideas and the same concepts.

“It will vary differently as it moves down the age groups, there will be a lot of variants in there and it will be filtered a little bit.

“But certainly at our level at 23s we need to kind of watch what the first team are doing and mirror what they are doing and try and emulate that because ultimately let’s be honest it’s a fantastic way to play I feel and it’s a fantastic way I think for the fans to watch the team to play.

“And it fits Leeds United.

“In my opinion, growing up as a Leeds fan coming through the club, it fits Leeds United for me.”

Fittingly, former England under-20s international Jackson himself has also come through the ranks at the club, both as a player and a coach.

Having been in charge of United’s under-15s, 16s and then 18s, the former Whites defender was appointed head coach of the club’s under-23s last September as his predecessor Carlos Corberan left for Huddersfield Town.

Eight months later, Jackson’s side were promoted as runaway champions and the 23s coach is loving life in charge of the young Whites.

“I feel extremely privileged to be in the position I am in, to be able to watch Marcelo and his staff work on a daily basis and kind of pick their brains and learn from them,” said Jackson.

“For my development it’s fantastic.

“The staff who work with me, we are trying to grow, every day we are trying to get better every day and we are trying to develop the players every day.

“Where that takes us, who knows but ultimately that’s all any coach tries to do every day is get better and I feel I am in a fantastic place to be able to learn and get better.

“I think there’s a lot to be optimistic and excited about throughout the whole Academy.

“You have got the 23s and the 18s and all the age groups down.

“The work that has gone on behind the scenes to build the Academy back up to where it is, credit to the chairman and Victor Orta and as regards to all the recruitment staff as well but also all the Academy staff as a whole. You can’t praise people enough for the work that goes on behind the scenes to get that infrastructure right.

“Ultimately now we have got a manager as well who buys into that and wants to promote where necessary the youth as well.

“It’s a perfect fit.

“There’s a lot to be optimistic about and we will keep pushing like we do every day to get better.

“We want to compete against the highest opposition as often as we can and we have got an opportunity to do that now in the league above.

“But we will never take our foot off the gas.

“We can always be better, we know that, as coaches and as players we know we can always be better and you can always make yourself better.

“But we want to strive and push forward.”

As a Category One Academy, Leeds have now pushed forward to the very top.

Fixtures against the likes of Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham now await – and Jackson cannot wait.

The only bad news for United’s youngsters is that mirroring Bielsa’s methods also means the concept of murderball training introduced to the 23s.

“Ultimately that filters down yeah!” said the 23s boss, asked if Mark Jackson murderball sessions were a thing.

“I can’t take any credit for that, that’s the manager.

“But the intensity those kind of sessions bring, as players and coaches have said before, we need to have that intensity within our training sessions every day because when you go out on that pitch, that hard work and that intensity needs to be there so you have to train it.

“If you want to produce something on the pitch, you have to replicate that in training.”

Assessing the challenge of top-tier football next term, Jackson beamed: “It will be a real challenge.

“But we knew it was going to be a challenge this year stepping up to Cat One.

“But all we want to do as a club and as members of staff and players is you want to compete against the best possible opposition week in, week out.

“We have given ourselves the opportunity and the players have given themselves the opportunity to do that now.

“It’s been tough and we have come up against some great opposition.

“We have got to step up, we are going to be playing the likes of Chelsea and Man City and that’s great for the club because that’s where we want to be and that’s where we want to be challenging ourselves week in week out.”