Her er en artikkel om U23 og U18 hovedsaklig, men strengt tatt 'alle utviklingslagene' til klubben.
Sååå jeg plasserte det her.
Bielsa har bare vært i klubben noen måneder. Likevel er mange (meg selv inkludert) opptatt av hans 'legacy' - at hans 'tanker' skal videreføres/bygges på også etter at han har dratt.
Kontinuitet er noe klubben har manglet i årevis. Kanskje den viktigste faktoren vi har manglet for å 'komme tilbake'...
Succession planning finally in evidence at Leeds United as club looks to create self-sufficient future
With the first team, U23s and U18s all flying at the start of the season, could it be that Leeds finally has a plan for the future?ByJon Howe
11:55, 10 SEP 2018
Sport
Supporting Leeds United is largely an acceptance that what makes football wonderful is usually what happens to other people.
Dazzling football, promotion highs, cup runs; these are all alien concepts in LS11, mythical tales our forefathers talked about whimsically over the Sunday roast.
Such success, of course, usually comes from having structure, organisation and strategy in place. Yet, even supporting a football club with a ‘plan’ is a sepia-tinted notion to fans who have long since grown weary of their club becoming a byword for farce and ineptitude. Leeds United have been back to the drawing board so many times over the last decade they have earned enough loyalty points for a free trip. The suggestion that dogs learn quicker is a valid one when you see the reset button being pressed so willingly, but the overall plan to get to a certain point can often become lost in the day-to-day frenzy of trying to get there.
Is a long-term plan finally in place?
For every Myanmar, Paul Heckingbottom and Felix Wiedwald, for example, there is a counter argument that points to long term foundation being put in place; cultural change that is bringing professionalism, leadership and direction, not just to help us navigate the slings and arrows of the here and now but to make Leeds United healthier and a more viable proposition to steer through whatever comes in the future.
When I first wrote about the unfathomable prospect of Marcelo Bielsa becoming our manager back in June , I talked about the importance of creating a legacy that Leeds United benefited from. We are already tired of reading about Bielsa’s influence on the managers of the Premier League’s top sides, and all we are interested in is what will be left at Leeds United when the Bielsa extravaganza finally leaves town. In truth, we have seen little of the restless tempestuousness we were told to expect, and Bielsa has so far carried an air of calmness and security. But still Leeds need to ensure they soak the well dry in terms of Bielsa’s wisdom and character while they have the honour of his presence in the building.
Corberan has been in the first-team dugout this season (Image: Leeds United)
In this respect it is great to see Carlos Corberan in the dugout for first team games, albeit in an undefined role, but certainly front and centre of proceedings and seemingly carrying an influence. Given Bielsa’s loyalty to his long-established team of coaches, fitness gurus, analysts and interpreters – and the fact that they all come as a package - it is not insignificant that Corberan has penetrated that and is afforded priceless insight into Bielsa’s inner sanctum. Time does not stand still long enough to truly understand the mind of Bielsa; his maverick machinations are a unique art form it would be futile to try and replicate, but in terms of philosophy, attitude, tactics and practices there is a wealth of learning that any fertile mind would readily absorb.
The opening weeks of the 2018/19 season have offered us ample evidence of Bielsa’s teachings permeating every level of the club, but in truth much of this groundwork was done over the first few months of Andrea Radrizzani’s sole ownership over 12 months ago, back when the notion of time travel appeared less fanciful than Marcelo Bielsa becoming Leeds United manager.
Corberan, let’s not forget, was appointed in June 2017, and while he may not necessarily be earmarked as the heir apparent to the Leeds United hotseat, he appears to be an able conduit to spread Bielsa’s fabled influence. The Under-23 team finished last season with an impressive unbeaten streak that has carried on into what appears to be a Year Dot for Leeds United. Four wins and a draw sees the Under-23s top of their Northern Section, but it is not so much the results as the style of play that is making Leeds fans sit up and take notice.
It is true that Corberan’s youngsters were playing confident, free-flowing football last season too, and indeed it should be noted that Mark Jackson’s Under-18s won the Professional Development Northern League title last season also. It is no secret that the success of the first team is the most influential at any football club, but also probably the hardest to achieve, so it is no surprise that it has taken some time, some mistakes and not inconsiderable money to get the top three playing tiers of the club truly aligned in philosophy and trajectory.
Having Corberan, Jackson and also Academy head coach Richard Cresswell on board at this time is crucial in ensuring there is longevity, continuity and a Leeds heart remaining whenever Bielsa decides to walk off into the sunset. But in terms of playing resources we are also seeing bountiful fruits from a harvest that long pre-dates El Loco.
It is not uncommon for Leeds fans to hang their hat on a key youngster that emerges from Thorp Arch, but a prolific conveyor belt is currently changing this identity on an almost weekly basis. Tom Pearce, Bailey Peacock-Farrell and Ryan Edmondson already feel like old heads, as new names take the natural route of bypassing age groups because their talent demands it.
Already this season 18-year-old Jamie Shackleton has shot into the first team picture. Jack Clarke has plundered three goals and two assists in the last two games, his most recent contribution a delicious volley in the 5-0 win over Bristol City that dripped with nonchalance and natural ability. Clarke is just 18, so is Jordan Stevens, so is Callum Nicell who signed his first professional contract last week, so is Robbie Gotts who caught the eye against Bristol City and so is Bobby Kamwa who was a major factor in the Under-18s success last season. Any one of them could make the step up this season, and this is notwithstanding players out on loan such as Paudie O’Connor and the highly-rated Aapo Halme just recovering from injury.
Close observers of Jackson’s youngsters have pinpointed Henri Kumwenda and Nohan Kenneh – who each scored a brace in beating Watford 5-1 last week – while Alfie McCalmont is often mentioned in dispatches. It is clear the investment in recruitment, education and coaching at the Academy has led us to where we are now, not just with a bunch of promising youngsters but with players schooled in the right way of playing and thinking, who trust in each other and can’t necessarily be pigeon-holed to a specific position; the Bielsa way if you like.
It all points to sustainability and growth; to a plan that maintains a position of strength should resources become thin on the ground. Those resources might be money or staff, but either way, Leeds United is slowly becoming self-sufficient, and therefore better set to turn yesterday’s memories into something to savour today.
https://www.leeds-live.co.uk/sport/leeds-united/leeds-united-bielsa-corberan-future-15131999?1
