Patrick Bamford shares what Sam Allardyce said in first meeting which shocked all Leeds foreign players

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Patrick Bamford says Sam Allardyce’s abrupt management style was a shock to some of Leeds United’s foreign players last season.

Allardyce came in for the final four matches of the season in May in a final roll of the dice by Leeds as they desperately looked to avoid relegation from the Premier League.

In the latest episode of the BBC’s ‘My Mate’s A Footballer’ podcast, Bamford revealed how in Allardyce’s first meeting with the squad, he told them they were ‘s—- at defending’.

Leeds had the worst defensive record in the division last season with 78 goals conceded in their 38 matches, and Allardyce could not do anything to stem the flow.

In Javi Gracia’s final five matches in charge, Leeds conceded 18 goals in just five games and it was that run of form which meant relegation was a certainty.

Allardyce’s brutal approach wasn’t enough for Leeds

Sharing details of his Allardyce’s first meeting, Bamford says he and the English lads were a fan of his brutal approach, but it certainly came as a shock to some of the foreign players.

He said: “He was brilliant. We had a meeting and he just walked in, stood at the front with his cup of tea and basically just told us we are s—- at defending and we need to sort this out. And that’s what he did. There was no beating around the bush.

“The lads who didn’t know much about him, who had been playing abroad or foreign lads were taken aback, but us English lads who growing up had watched him and know what he’s like were just like this is brilliant. Tell it to us how it is and we can deal with it.”

Leeds were dreadful in Allardyce’s final two matches against West Ham and Tottenham but there certainly was more fight shown against both Manchester City and Newcastle United.

However, like Allardyce mentioned in his meeting, Leeds had some terrible players at the back and ultimately there wasn’t much he could do.

It is good to hear that Allardyce actually told them how it was even if his appointment showed little to no impact on the pitch.