Marcelo Bielsa is to blame for his departure from Leeds United.
That’s according to Mirror journalist David Anderson, who has shockingly claimed that the South American tactician refused to budge on his heavy physical demands – causing striker Patrick Bamford to exacerbate a pre-existing and long-term injury during a training exercise.
Writing in his latest article about how Bielsa pushed Bamford to the point of breakdown, Anderson wrote: “[Bamford’s] rehabilitation was further hampered by Bielsa’s intense physical demands.
“He was adamant that no player could return to the first team until they proved their fitness on the training ground, including in the ultimate trial-by-ordeal, murderball.
“This proved too much for Bamford and he broke down twice more when he was on the verge of returning.
“Bamford would clearly have benefited from a more gentle approach… but Bielsa refused to compromise his beliefs and Bamford and Leeds paid the price.”
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Bamford has been out of action since last December and has only recently returned to action after missing a total of 12 games.
Leeds United’s goal-scoring plight could have been eased if the English forward had come back sooner, but Anderson blames his delay in a return to fitness on Bielsa’s harsh training methods.
Interesting.