Jon Newsome has told BBC Radio Leeds that he was alarmed by Jesse Marsch’s comments after Leeds United beat Bournemouth last weekend, in which he suggested that the Whites did not press enough.
It is still hard to know what to make of Marsch’s Leeds as the mid-season break looms. The Whites are in a precarious place in the Premier League. But the situation is a lot brighter after wins against Liverpool and Bournemouth.
There was an opportunity to win three games in a row on Saturday. Leeds led three times against Tottenham. However, they were ultimately beaten 4-3 in North London.
Marsch comments set alarm bells ringing
When everything clicks, the football is exhilarating. And with the talent in Marsch’s squad, there could well be an incredibly bright future ahead. However, it is worrying how easy some teams are finding it playing against Leeds.
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That is not all Marsch’s fault. We are crying out for a striker and a left-back in January. And greater depth at centre-back and in central midfield would not go amiss either.
But it is still not entirely clear what Marsch is going to do to improve the glaring problems. And after the loss to Spurs, Newsome admitted that he took issue with the Leeds boss’ recent comments.
“One of the concerns for me, I watched it last week, I was there at the game against Bournemouth and then I watched Match of the Day. And they highlighted how exposed our back four were, and how vacant the midfield were,” he told BBC Radio Leeds.
“And when they spoke to Jesse, they asked Jesse the question and said: ‘do you think sometimes you’ve pressed too quickly and too much and your back four gets exposed?’ He said: ‘no, I don’t think we’ve pressed enough’. The alarm bells rang in my mind and I thought oh my God.”
Marsch got breathing space last season. Performances were not as important. And obviously, he was handed a tough task trying to pick up the pieces from the final stages of Marcelo Bielsa’s tenure.
The squad has improved. And some of the signs have been incredibly promising. Leeds played both Chelsea and Arsenal off the park. And they deserved their win at Liverpool.
And no one can question the desire of the players.
Marsch also deserves some credit if he did not get all of the signings he wanted in the summer. It is clear that the squad needs to improve in January.
But some of the decisions he has made this season have really hurt Leeds. So the jury, unfortunately, remains out on Marsch for the time-being.