WATCH - Marcelo Bielsa explains how he protects his Leeds United players amid challenging 'reality'

United conceded 10 goals in two games this week to make their defensive record officially the worst in the league.

Leeds have let Premier League teams put 56 goals past them since the start of this season, an average of 2.2 per game.

With the Whites' relegation rivals enjoying some positive results this week, the gap to the drop zone now stands at just three points.

In his press conference ahead of Leeds' Premier League clash with Tottenham Hotspur, Bielsa shared his strategy for protecting his players from losing confidence in times of difficulty.

"The first thing I do is to say to them something that I believe is true," Bielsa said.

"I never use elements that I don’t believe are true to change the state of play.

"There are occasions when their confidence is restored by explaining.

"Sometimes the confidence needs to be restored by facing the reality crudely.

"A person not only believes in themselves if the person conducting them paints over the consequences.

"Sometimes you just have to say things as they are."

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