BIELSA: WE MUST NOT LOSE

MARCELO BIELSA has declared himself an FA Cup romantic – but will leave no stone unturned to ensure his Leeds side do not fall victim to Crawley this afternoon.

The Argentinian is expected to play a strong team as the Whites bid to avoid more humiliation.

Fourth Division Colchester United famously dumped out Don Revie’s mighty Leeds team back in 1971, and more recent embarrassment came with losses against non-league Histon and Sutton United.

Despite facing a potential banana skin, boss

Bielsa said: “For me, one of the great things about football – more than its aesthetic beauty – is that the best team doesn’t always win.

“I like it that a smaller club can really boost their profile by doing well when they come up against a bigger club.

“The best players facing opposition who are maybe not as good is something very valuable.

“The worst thing that can happen to football is that clubs with great historic value disappear.

“A way to keep them alive and thriving is through a competition like this one.”

Crawley are sitting in place sixth in League Two under boss John Yems on the back of an nine-match unbeaten run.

Bielsa, who sent an intern to watch Derby train during the infamous Spygate saga two years ago, has scrutinised Crawley closely. He insisted: “We treat every opponent the same way. We consider Crawley like a Premier League team and we’ve analysed them, a League Two side, like we would a Premier League team.

“Nowadays all the games are available and we’ve watched all the games Crawley have played.

“We’ve taken advantage of this opportunity to learn as much as possible about them in the lead-up to the game – but knowing an opponent doesn’t mean you can control them or neutralise them.

“You can be dominated by an opponent you know by memory or you can be superior to an opponent you’ve never seen before.

“Crawley change the positions of their players a lot during games.

“The majority of their players play in two or three positions.”