“All these questions about a contract extension for me are uncomfortable”, the former Chile coach told Gazzetta dello Sport.
“These are questions that could alter the balance between me and the club. I think that assessments should be made at the end of the season, when the results are definitive. Football is something that is in constant motion, which depends on opponents and results and we are still in three different competitions.”
The Athletic Bilbao coach is clearly wanted, and not just by Inter Milan, whom he has had to field question about. Chelsea seem to be interested too, and may see him as the ideal man to bring a new vision and style of play to the club. A man who is used to working with squads he inherits rather than make huge splashes in the transfer market, having coached Argentina and Chile and now Bilbao, whom only purchase Basque players. This is perhaps ideal for a club like Chelsea, who cannot pay too much and who need to change to a more attractive style of football.
But it would be hard to see how John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba, to name just three, could fit into his system. Bielsa demands high energy performances, pressing high up the pitch and pace. Bielsa though, whomever he is with next season, if its Bilbao, or anyone else, will be lucky. He brings something unique. His style of play his teams play is like Barcelona, but with more directness. It’s simple yet complex at the same time, a perpetual contradiction, like Bielsa himself.
They attack their opponents, forcing them high up the pitch to win the ball, then break on them at speed. It is wonderful to watch and they are some of the best counter attackers in Europe. Athletic Bilbao have really given something new to the European football fan this season with their play. But they do have one question over them – whether they will suffer from burnout. After both victories over Man Utd, they then suffered bad defeats in La Liga which dented their Champions League hopes.
But there is little doubt that Athletic Bilbao are a potential force in the making, and it is more remarkable still given that they only sign Basque players. It is like a small national team, the size say of Wales, competing at the top level of European competition. Remarkable in its execution, Bilbao of course are one of the clubs with the richest heritage in Europe, but have fallen behind a bit in the age of the billionaire owner who can buy whom he wants. Bilbao can’t. Yet still, here they are, competing at the highest level. That is what Bielsa can do. No wonder he has so many admirers.
