Bielsa: I was so close to taking the job at Liberty
MARCELO Bielsa has lifted the lid on why he missed out on the Swansea City job in 2015.
The Leeds United boss, preparing to bring his side to the Liberty Stadium tonight, was the leading contender for the managerial hotseat in SA1 following Garry Monk’s dismissal in December of that year.
Chairman Huw Jenkins travelled to South America to meet the Argentinian with a view to bringing his high- energy, all-action style of football to the Premier League.
But no deal was concluded, with Alan Curtis and then Francesco Guidolin taking charge of the Swans over the remainder of the campaign.
Bielsa, now 63, said timing had been a factor in the eventual outcome, but added that he had good memories of his discussions with the Welsh club.
“Yes, it was a possibility, a real possibility,” said Bielsa when asked if he could have taken the job . “Yes, (I did come close).” He added: “I was willing to work with Swansea but at the end they chose somebody else.
“I don’t remember very well. I think they wanted to start the season, not to come in the middle of the season and the contact I got was in the middle of the season and they didn’t make it easy to reach an agreement.
“But I have good memories of the dialogues I had at Swansea.”
Bielsa, who has enjoyed notable success with the likes of Newell’s Old Boys, Chile, Argentina and Athletic Bilbao during his coaching career, has made a superb start to life at Elland Road, winning four games from four in all competitions.
Swansea, meanwhile, are also unbeaten under their new boss Graham Potter with seven points from a possible nine.
And Bielsa was effusive in his praise for the former Östersunds manager and the style of play he is looking to establish at Swansea.
“I know that he is an English coach that has had success in football of the north. He has new ideas, I know he’s young and I know he is admired in international football,” said Bielsa.
“He’s English, he’s a modern coach, he has new ideas, he brings new ideas.
“It’s very difficult to create something new in football. But it’s possible to take from the past things that we usually don’t use anymore.
“This is the difference between being modern and taking ideas on the past.
“It’s a team that takes care of how they move the ball. They are very interested in how they move the ball, where they put the ball.
“The players of Swansea know how to build from the back. In their style, the goalkeeper and defenders build from the back. And for me it’s >
the feature that you could underline from Swansea.
“But they also have different possibilities. They have a real number nine and they have substitutes when they get to play who can modify the game.”
Potter, for his part, was similarly complimentary of Bielsa and how he has managed to hit the ground running in Yorkshire.
“We are very fortunate to have him in British football. He has had an amazing career, he has been hugely influential for lots of top, top clubs. He is one of those people who you have admired from a distance for a long, long time,” he said.
“Anybody who has been in the game as long as he has I am full of respect for.
“It’s going to be an interesting evening for me. It is not necessarily about me versus any coach, it’s just about Swansea against Leeds and it is going to be a really good game.
“You’re aware of his career. He has managed the national teams of Argentina and Chile and his methods are pioneering and creative.
“At the same time I remember his Bilbao team playing against Manchester United.
“There are not too many in world football coaching-wise who are as influential as he is and has been.
“I think we are very fortunate to have him working in the United Kingdom.”