Pontus...
Pontus Jansson: ‘Bielsa had bad sides but I learned so much from him’https://www.theguardian.com/football/2020/feb/09/pontus-jansson-brentford-leeds-united-marcelo-bielsa-malmo-zlatan-ibrahimovic?fbclid=IwAR3fadwCLQmAbU3iW9djRmSgYfWXXSlYguMrc1yXa4w_H_2r69lEFL3qvPAUtdrag:
There is so much to talk to Jansson about: from how to stop Brentford’s BMW frontline of Saïd Benrahma, Bryan Mbeumo and Ollie Watkins in training to laughing about being outnumbered in the dressing room by several Danes, including the head coach, Thomas Frank – “I am on my own against seven or eight Danish players†– but with his former club Leeds at Griffin Park on Tuesday and Jansson set to return from a hip injury, conversation sticks on those recurring accusations of burnout under Marcelo Bielsa.
After a 2-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest on Saturday Leeds have won two of their past 11 matches.
“If you look at the Arsenal game [in the FA Cup], I was there at the Emirates and Leeds played fantastic. It was the same against QPR, when they lost 1-0. They were good enough to win so sometimes it is just small things.
“Maybe not so much in this time of year – I think this time of year I was flying, playing really good – but around March and the beginning of April, especially after the international break, I felt really tired.
“Maybe that was because I became a father and maybe I was not sleeping as well, but you would have to ask every individual to get a true answer. Towards the end of last season I felt more mentally tired than physically tired. Maybe it is a common thing and this year it is happening the same as last year for them, but it is difficult to say.â€
Jansson insists his reluctance to allow Aston Villa to score an equaliser at Elland Road in April at Bielsa’s request did not blemish his relationship with the Argentinian, despite being allowed to join Brentford on a three-year contract three months later.
Leeds had taken the lead when Villa had a player down injured and asked for the game to be stopped. Bielsa then instructed his players to allow Villa to score but Jansson was not happy with this and attempted an unsuccessful one-man mission to prevent the goal.
“I grew a lot last season, the things that I learned from him and we learned as a team, they are things I will take with me for the rest of my life. I learned so much: how to take care of your body; how well-trained you have to be to play in such a good team; how you have to be on the pitch both physically and mentally; how to learn to read the game, so many things that you could learn from. He also had bad sides – every person has a bad side – but there are so many things I learned from Bielsa.â€
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His impact at Brentford is clear – they boast the Championship’s best defensive record – and he has big hopes for this season. “If I could choose the top two teams to go up, I’d choose us and them [Leeds], of course,†Jansson says. “I still have Leeds on my heart – that does not change just because I left. I will love Leeds until I die, and the same with Brentford. But I’d be lying if I said I don’t want Leeds to lose every game now, because I want us to pass them in the table.
“I still have a lot of friends in the team, I talk to the owner and some of the staff, so I want the best for them, but it is difficult when you are fighting against them for the top two spots.â€