Leeds United, once esteemed English heavyweights, have suffered years of downfall due to administrative oversight but are eyeing an upsurge this term under the iconic Marcelo Bielsa, the former Argentina and Chile chief, who just completed the Whites’ first permanent deal of the summer window, roping in defensive ace Barry Douglas from Premier League new boys Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Despite a surprise resurgence under Garry Monk in the 2016-17 season, Leeds narrowly missed out on a Championship play-off place and Monk’s decision to step down last summer brought the Whites back to square one. The gamble of appointing little-known Thomas Christiansen did not pay off in spite of a promising inception as a series of dismal outcomes resulted in his dismissal.
Paul Heckingbottom, his successor, only managed four wins in around four months’ time towards the end of the previous campaign and club owner Andrea Radrizzani, not veryh impressed, decided to appoint a more renowned figure to take charge of a dejected Leeds side at Elland Road.
Bielsa, 63, is known as one of the pioneers of modern day football who accepted the challenge of restoring the lost pride of the Championship strugglers guiding them to a much-awaited Premier League return but showed little intent so far to perform a squad overhaul implying his faith in the current set of players.
He only sanctioned a couple of loan signings in form of custodian Jamaal Blackman and midfielder Lewis Baker from Chelsea before acquiring the 28-year-old Scotsman on a three-year deal for a reported fee of around £3m.
Douglas featured regularly in a left wingback role for the 2017-18 Championship winners and also notched five goals in 40 league outings. He had previous stints with Polish outfit Lech Poznan and Turkish side Konyaspor since leaving his homeland at a very young age but made an immediate impact in West Midlands under Nuno Espirito Santo who preferred a ‘back three’ all season and deployed Douglas as a wingback down the left flank. His good form earned him his international debut earlier this year and the player, now at Leeds, will add much-needed creativity to Bielsa’s famous 3-3-1-3 setup.
Although Leeds brought in Laurens De Bock from Club Brugge in winter and the presence of experienced Gaetano Berardi will provide competition for a starting role, Douglas should be more fitting as an inverted wingback ahead of the other two while Berardi might also be utilized in either side of a three-man backline.
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The Scotsman is known for his set-piece attributes as well and his experience with Wolves will bring in a significant promotion push for the West Yorkshire outfit. They still require a few more high-profile recruits before the deadline but the signing of Barry Douglas is indubitably a right step towards Bielsa’s Leeds revolution.
