Latest news with #MarceloBielsa
The Sun
05-07-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Leeds icon Stuart Dallas ‘not missing' a thing about football one year on after horror injury forced early retirement
IT'S BEEN over a year since a horror injury finally forced Stuart Dallas into retirement. Though the Leeds United legend, 34, is not missing a single thing about playing and won't even contemplate coaching until he can be 'honest with himself' and give it everything. 3 3 3 Ex- Northern Ireland international Dallas made over 250 appearances for the Elland Road outfit and was a pivotal part of Marcelo Bielsa 's promotion-winning side. But disaster struck in April 2022 when he suffered a femoral fracture in his knee after a sickening on-field collision with Man City's Jack Grealish. Dallas bravely fought to save his career but the 'irreparable damage' eventually forced him to hang up his boots in May 2024 following a two-year battle. The injury was so bad it still causes him pain today - though it's all physical rather than mental as he does not miss a thing about playing. Speaking to Sun Sport at the Leeds American Golf for the #RifeDontMiss putting challenge, celebrating the launch of the new RIFE Black Edition putters, Dallas said: 'My knee's alright. It allows me to do what I need to do now. I still need to go to the gym and keep up the strength in it. I knew that anyway and I suppose it holds me accountable to get in the gym and stuff as well. I play a bit of padel here and there too. 'I'm able to do bits and pieces and so far I've not really had many problems. It's a bit sore at times but that's just part and parcel of it due to how complex the injury was.' For some, watching your former team-mates storm to Championship promotion after your forced retirement would have rubbed extra salt in the wound. Not Dallas though. BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS He said: 'I'm in a good place and I always have been throughout it. It's been totally fine. I'll be totally honest with you, I don't miss any of it. Because of the age I was and I knew that I couldn't physically play at that level - I don't miss any of it. 'I'm very, very comfortable with my decision. I have a good life, a beautiful family who are healthy. I've got nothing to complain about.' Daniel Farke, who Dallas spent his final year as a pro under, was the man who guided Leeds back to the top-flight. Despite lifting the title, the German coach faced intense speculation over his future before the club backed him publicly. And with three new additions - striker Lukas Nmecha, centre-back Jaka Bijol and defender Sebastiaan Bornauw - on board already, Dallas has no doubts that Farke deserved a shot at keeping Leeds up after bouncing back from last year's play-off heartbreak. He said: 'He's been brilliant. He's remained calm throughout his whole time here and didn't panic when things were going against him. Having worked with him I know exactly how he is and what he says in the media and how he acts is exactly the same and that's brilliant for players. 'When he stuck his neck on the line and said that he was 100 per cent convinced that Leeds would get promoted, as a player that would give me a lot of confidence to go and perform. 'It's definitely the right decision to keep him. What he's achieved over back-to-back Championship seasons can't be topped. He'll have learned from his mistakes in the Premier League before with Norwich and is going to be obviously backed a bit better hopefully.' Speaking of coaches, Dallas revealed his own plans to start his journey into the dug-out when confirming his playing days were done. Though the ex-Brentford ace, who was equally at home on the pitch at full-back or in midfield, has put that on the back-burner for now - until he is ready to go into it with the same commitment he showed on the pitch. He added: 'I've done my badges. It's not something where I've been focused on. Maybe down the line. I've got a lot to offer the game. At the minute there's so many other avenues that I can go down. 'To be a coach, you've got to be fully committed. Not just for yourself, but for the people that you will be coaching. If I am to go into that, I want to be 100 per cent fully focused on it. 'At the minute there's just other things going on that doesn't allow me to do that. I wouldn't be being honest with myself or with the people that I'd be coaching.' Dallas appeared at the second #RifeDontMiss Challenge, celebrating the launch of the new RIFE Black Edition putters.
Reuters
01-07-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Wolfsburg's 'Gouda Guardiola' Simonis is big fan of Man City coach
BERLIN, July 1 (Reuters) - Dutch coach Paul Simonis earned the nickname 'Gouda Guardiola' for his faint resemblance to Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, but the new VfL Wolfsburg boss said on Tuesday he was actually a fan of the real thing. Simonis, who took over at Wolfsburg for the coming season after leading Dutch side Go Ahead Eagles to their first ever Dutch KNVB Cup victory in April, said Guardiola was one of the coaches who inspired him. He also named Paris St Germain's Luis Enrique and Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa. "Good question," Simonis told a press conference when asked about which coaches inspired him. "I really like, not because he looks like (me), but I really like Pep Guardiola. "He looks like me. I was already bald before he was bald. What I like about these guys is how the players talk about them. If you take good care of them, they will pay you back." "These types are capable of doing that, besides having a good technical and tactical plan to watch the games," Simonis added. The Bundesliga season starts on August 22.
The Guardian
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Through It All Together review – Leeds United drama tackles big themes
Leeds United fan and playwright Chris O'Connor is clearly Shankly-ian in his belief that football is more important than life or death. He lays out his argument in Through It All Together, which is at once a paean to his football club, a contention that fandom is a glue that binds with more ferocity than a Norman Hunter tackle, and an appeal for the deification of the manager who led Leeds back into the Premier League in 2020. Where Liverpool had Bill Shankly – recently given his own moment in the stage spotlight in the moving and epic Red or Dead – the Whites had Marcelo Bielsa, or El Loco as O'Connor reminds us, the nickname with which the Argentinian arrived at Elland Road. If there were any doubt as to the regard in which fans like O'Connor hold the manager, a stained glass window bearing the image of Bielsa rises above the stage of Amanda Stoodley's set. At the heart of Through It All Together are long-time married couple and Leeds season ticket holders Howard and Sue, played by Reece Dinsdale and Shobna Gulati. Howard is just about living with dementia, wife Sue is coping with it admirably, while daughter Hazel is either in denial or overcompensating when it comes to her dad's condition. The trials of having the condition, or living with a family member with it, are intertwined with the season before and the season during which Bielsa's Leeds United secured promotion – one which was plagued by Covid and lockdown. But the play never lands firmly on either story. Howard's dementia doesn't progress to its usual conclusion, leaving Dinsdale, a fine actor, with a curtailed journey, while Bielsa's two-season odyssey back to the Premier League is told in snippets that the Leeds faithful in the audience clearly loved, but the uninitiated will find have the depth of a highlight reel. Everal A Walsh and Dean Smith, in roles from podcasters to fans in the pub to club higher-ups, are uniformly hilarious in the very amusingly sketched scenes in which they appear. The play, like the club, will have its fans, but will mean most to those who are already marching on together. At Leeds Playhouse until 19 July
Telegraph
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Leeds have lofty ambitions – now their transfer strategy must make it a reality
Leeds United set a high bar with their recruitment ahead of the club's previous return to the Premier League in the summer of 2020. Can any other promoted team boast of signing a future Ballon d'Or contender having just climbed out of the Championship? It was not only Raphinha, bought for £17 million from Rennes, who enhanced his value at Elland Road following a move that window. Robin Koch was playing in the latter stages of the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt last season, while Diego Llorente finished sixth in La Liga with Real Betis. Marcelo Bielsa was in charge at the time, Victor Orta did the deals and much of what they touched turned to gold. Crysencio Summerville was an under-23 signing from Feyenoord who turned into a £25 million player for West Ham United. Loans for Helder Costa and Illan Meslier were made permanent and Jack Harrison was re-signed to provide continuity to the team that won the Championship during Covid. Leeds start their season under the lights against Everton on Aug 18, giving the club the best part of two months to add to Daniel Farke's squad and give them a shot at breaking the cycle of promoted teams struggling in the top flight. At their Thorp Arch base, there is a very different feel to that in 2020 – and indeed more recent seasons. The club's rise back to the Premier League five years ago was under the stewardship of chief executive Angus Kinnear, a respected official who got deals done efficiently. Orta was the firebrand director of football whose passion could spill over while watching games. With Kinnear now at Everton, intermediaries have been speaking to Adam Underwood, who has worked his way up from the Leeds academy to be appointed sporting director. Assisted by Alex Davies, working as a head of recruitment, there has been a change of pace to the days when Orta would get back to agents with immediate answers. So far, Leeds have agreed a two-year deal for Germany forward Lukas Nmecha, 26, which begins when his contract with Wolfsburg ends at the end of the month. Nmecha started in Manchester City's academy and went on loan to Preston North End and Middlesbrough before heading to the Bundesliga. Farke has also added centre-back Jaka Bijol to his squad after a deal was struck with Udinese for the Slovenian who played regularly over the past three seasons in Serie A. 'The club and myself are ready for the Premier League,' he said when sealing a deal worth around £15 million. Leeds have been looking at goalkeepers, with Meslier dropped for the final seven games of the season. Many believe that a goalkeeper arrival would be in the event of Meslier leaving, but there have been no official bids for the 25-year-old in this window. It is a buyers' market for keepers in the Premier League. England international Sam Johnstone has lost his place at Wolves, while clubs are expected to look at Manchester City's Stefan Ortega and whether he can be tempted by a No 1 slot. It is understood there is genuine interest in Sweden left-back Gabriel Gudmundsson, who has played for Lille over the past four seasons. That could signal the sale of Junior Firpo, one of the players from the club's last spell in the Premier League. They have also looked at Strasbourg midfielder Habib Diarra – who is now set to join Sunderland – and Noah Sadiki at Union Saint-Gilloise. It will be down to Underwood to complete the deals. Intermediaries dealt with experienced executive Nick Hammond in recent windows until the changes behind the scenes. Farke's future is assured, with chairman Paraag Marathe giving the German his full backing. Farke got Norwich City promoted twice but has relegation on his CV and perhaps a point to prove in the top flight. 'I have ended the speculation. He is my man,' Marathe said on BBC Radio Leeds. 'I'm under no illusions that it is going to be easy. The past two seasons, the three promoted teams came straight back down but we have something they don't have. We have Daniel Farke, first of all.' Other issues that need resolving include Harrison, who is back at the club after a spell at Everton. Does he go on loan again? Redevelopment work on Elland Road should start this season. The project, subject to full planning approval, involves adding about 20,000 seats and increasing the capacity beyond 50,000 to serve the long waiting list for season-tickets. Plans were submitted based on Leeds being in the Premier League, which Farke delivered by smashing the 100-point barrier. Now the work is being done to keep them there.
New Indian Express
24-06-2025
- Sport
- New Indian Express
India vs England: A Duckett-list century for the ages
CHENNAI: "A man with new ideas," Marcelo Bielsa once said, "is a mad man, until his ideas triumph." Shubman Gill and India's management may have seen that quote plastered on a prominent Leeds wall on their way to Headingley. Bielsa, the Uruguayan coach, lifted Leeds, a famous old club, and gave them a thriving modern identity a few years ago. Thirty minutes north of Elland Road lies Headingley, a similarly atmospheric ground, home to some of the greatest English triumphs, none greater than Ben Stokes' fourth innings Houdini against Australia in 2019. Almost six years later, they have another moment to rival that Ashes win. On a stop-start, sun feeling a bit shy kind of day, the hosts managed to hold their nerve over India to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. The hosts' usual suspect — Joe Root — took them home but it was Ben Duckett who orchestrated this run chase. Before dissecting the southpaw's century, his contribution will be vindication to the 30-year-old. At Nottinghamshire's media day just before the start of the English cricketing summer, he was asked about Jasprit Bumrah. The opener, who had faced the pace ace in India last year, was mindful of his threat but maintained that Bumrah wouldn't surprise him. That was taken out of context. Soon enough, he was forced to delete his X account because people hadn't taken kindly to his thoughts. Forget Bumrah, none of the Indian bowlers on show surprised him. He did have a sizable dollop of luck — you need that when you are getting over 130 on the final day of a Test — in the form of close calls and several plays and misses. But like all of the aggressive (and successful) modern openers, his methodology is dependent on compartmentalising. "Did I get beaten off the very previous ball?" Doesn't matter. "Did I misjudge the line?" No problems. "Did I get lucky?" Time to forget about it. Unlike all of the other aggressive modern openers, he has a very compulsive need to play at everything. He has left somewhere between 1-2% of all deliveries he has faced as an opener (for context, Virender Sehwag used to leave over 10%). Late on Monday, he left one delivery. On Tuesday, he didn't leave. When he finally left, he had 149 from 170 (21x4, 1x6). From start to finish, he batted like someone who believed he was going to win this Test for his side. It included a phase in the first session where both Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj were constantly testing the outside edge of Duckett in overcast conditions. So, one of Bazball's primary operators decided to play the situation. Off Bumrah, he scored 5 off (one boundary, one single, 19 dots and two maidens) 21. The pacer beat him on a number of occasions but he didn't let it get to his head. You could also say that Bumrah didn't surprise him. It was just two athletes giving it their all.
