Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa said he will no longer discuss which players will be in his starting lineup ahead of time after his decision to name his team two days before a match last week sparked a “backlash”.
Bielsa had been asked last Wednesday if he would keep West Ham United guessing on his centre back partnership for their Premier League game. The Argentine then proceeded to list his entire lineup for the match, which took place on Friday.
That led to West Ham manager Moyes saying Bielsa could have been bluffing but the Argentine said it was not a ruse.
West Ham won the game 2-1.
“Nothing about it was incorrect,” Bielsa told reporters ahead of Wednesday’s league game against Newcastle United.
“It would be incorrect if we thought that knowing the 11 of the opponent gives you an important advantage. For me it doesn’t give you an important advantage.
“So from now on and to avoid any backlash, I will not continue to give answers on the players who can or who cannot play on the weekend.”
Leeds are 14th with 14 points from 12 games. (Reporting by Arvind Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford )
