Leeds United coach Jesse Marsch held his pre-match press conference today, here’s what he had to say and all the key points going into the game against Southampton on Saturday.
He started as always, talking about injuries by saying “I just want to start on the injury front like normal. We’ve had a lot more guys in training this week. So, Luke and Luis have all in their training and are eligible for the weekend. Still, Junior’s probably a couple of weeks behind. The same with Luke Ayling, although he had a visit to his surgeon down in London, and the surgeon said that he’s ahead of schedule and looking really good and he just needs a little bit more time.”
“Then Stuart Dallas, I saw on the pitch today, moving around a little bit. So that was an exciting moment for us and then Danny Van den Heuvel is still working on his neck but looking positive as well. So we’ve got more options this week, which is what we felt would be the case last week.”
When asked about the situation with Luis Sinisterra he said “So when he picked up the hamstring injury, it was from a contact, which is not the same as when it’s from a non-contact and then what the recovery is like can be different as well.”
“So we’ve been cautious with them, but he’s felt so good that we introduced him in a training and then he was like a neutral player one day and then yesterday, he was all in and he looks fantastic. So he’s obviously not 100% fit, but I still think there’s a good possibility that that he can help us with limited minutes.”
When asked if the decision to change things around is a big one or is it not a headache? He said “First of all clearly our focus is on this match and how important it is and staying in the moment is always really important. But even watching now the draw last night and knowing that in two weeks we have five matches in two weeks that we have to have a full roster squad available of guys that can that can be ready to perform it at every moment. That will be important.”
“So we purposely have tried to build more depth into our squad for moments like this, and I always get excited when guys get opportunities because everyone here works really hard and everyone deserves chances and it’s just about finding the right moment.”
When asked about Southampton, and the disappointing performance against them last season, he said “For us in general. I don’t think we’ve changed too much during the week. We went through the game against wolves and we talked about the things that we thought we could have done better and how it applies to what Southampton will be. We’re not overly satisfied with just the three points in the first match.”
“Obviously it was a good first step but we know we have a lot of work to do and I think the mentality of the group to improve get better and seize every moment is definitely there. For me personally I know that going down to Southampton won’t be easy, that it’s going to be very hot and that will be a factor in the match and so we have to manage that well.”
“We have to know that, for a club like us where we are right now, every game in this league is a massive challenge and we have to treat it as such. So we’re not getting ahead of ourselves and we know how important each match is and certainly in the moment now this match, if we can find a way to come away with something out of Southampton that’ll help us keep momentum moving in the right direction.”
On Brendan Aaronson’s performance and the goal he thought he had scored, he added “He’s claiming the goal, yes. If you look at it, I do think it hits him in the leg. So I don’t know if they want to change it or whatever.”
“I think Brenden showed his qualities and in a similar way that he showed them all pre-season. Speaking to all the new players who hadn’t played in a Premier League match yet, they all acknowledged the fact that the level is very high, and the demands are very high, but they all enjoyed the challenge. Brenden, I think, is one of those.”
“Physically managing the game, the pace of the game that demands tactically being sharp and clear and committing to the match always is and will continue to be a challenge in the games in this league. But all four of those guys, including Brenden, and I’ve already spoken about what a good learner he is, and how adaptable he is, I think all four guys are going to get better and better. That’s the goal for the entire group and the team.”
Will there be more activity before the transfer window closes? He said “I would say this, we’re always actively thinking. We’ve done a really good job of acting early, and then giving these players the best chance to integrate as smoothly and quickly as possible. It now puts us in a position where as we’re starting our season and evaluating our performances, we can look more carefully at exactly what we might need moving forward.”
“I think that we are being very aggressive in evaluating what’s out there and again, I said this after the match, really trying to find the right fit more than just adding a position or a number or a player, really trying to make sure that every decision we make is the right decision.”
Do you see any areas of the team that light, as it stands? He said “Obviously we’ve said a long time that we’ve been evaluating for the right striker, but Patrick being fully fit obviously helps us in that area. We also have some flexibility with Rodri who can play there and Dan can play there at times.”
“I think that we know that we have to add. With Mateo who we just spoke about, with Sonny Perkins, we have some young striker and obviously Joffy, but Joffy I considered part of the first group.”
“We have some good young strikers so a lot of it is also trying to look at from a profile what age do we want and that we don’t want to suffocate some of the young players having opportunities moving forward in the next one to three years. So it’s trying to find the right age profile and the right player profile and most importantly the right person to come into the team.”
“A striker, that’s not so easy. That’s not so easy. The way that I like to play the game we ask a lot from the strikers to work hard to press to it’s a very demanding position in the way that I like to play. So we’re trying to find the right one.”
And finally on the arrival of Joel Robles, he added “Yeah, I think the role for Joel is to really help support Illan and Kris but to compete with them and to push them every day. Obviously, our belief in Illan is at the highest level and even I think with the performance that he had against Wolves, it says everything.”
“I think he’s grown a lot and since I’ve been here, I’ve challenged him to become more of a leader more of a vocal presence and he’s responding really well to that. I think a guy with experience like Joel can help him, that relationship will be important, then the goal is to have Kris as the number two but he has to earn it.”
“In this situation, I think it’s healthy competition. I think Joel, we’ve seen he is a quality goalkeeper, but more importantly a very good person. He’s here for all the right reasons, which was really important to us and I’ve been very open with him, with the other two goalkeepers and with the entire team, that Joel is here not just to support them, but to push them, but to do it in a way where the goalkeeper group along with Marcos is really strong and really united. So far I think that they’ve done that at a really high level.”
Let us know in the comments what you thought of Jesse Marsch’s conference.
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