Every football player at every club will go through a period of inconsistency at one stage or another, so Patrick Bamford is no different in that sense.
The striker started off the 2020/21 Premier League season very well, however, the goals have really dried up for the front man.
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With his confidence clearly knocked, that’s also translated into below par performances.
For example, in the fixture against Brighton and Hove Albion at the weekend, Bamford, incredibly, only touched the ball 15 times in the 58 minutes that he was on the pitch, according to Leeds Live.
In context, players that had come on as subs with only 12 minutes to play saw more of the ball.
Rather than criticise Bamford, however, Bielsa looked to protect him against a barrage of expected abuse.
“We had a problem in the creation prior to the ball reaching Patrick, where he had no influence and he could not receive the ball in positions where he can cause harm to the opponent,” he said, per Leeds Live.
“When we can’t overlap out wide and when we can’t give the pass from the centre from a closer distance, it is difficult for him to shine.”
Being shielded in such a manner shows that Bamford has a manager willing to go above and beyond to ensure his players are looked after.
The least he can do is start repaying the favour in goals or by being more of an influence in games generally.