Jesse Marsch has revealed what he was unable to do immediately after being fired by Leeds United 12 months ago.
In some respects, it seems like a lifetime ago that Jesse Marsch was fired at Elland Road. Since the American’s departure, Michael Skubala, Javi Gracia, Sam Allardyce, and Daniel Farke have been appointed.
However, Leeds elected to fire Marsch just over a year ago, following an embarrassing 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest. Finally, it is likely that Leeds supporters will not remember his stint kindly.
Jesse Marsch was unable to say farewell to the Leeds squad after being sacked.
During his first few months in leadership, Marsch oversaw Leeds’ continued Premier League status.
However, those of us who had thought that a summer transfer window and a full pre-season would provide Marsch with the foundation to actually construct something were sorely disappointed.
The playing style drew few fans. And results were rarely significantly better. Leeds were barely a goal difference away from relegation when Marsch was dismissed.
Nonetheless, it was definitely a very traumatic experience for the 50-year-old. Marsch stated on Monday Night Football (broadcast on 19/2; 23:05) that he was unable to address the full group following the decision to let him go.
“Working with the players was amazing. They battled with everything they had for me. I enjoyed working with them, the entire process, and the team that we were forming,” he remarked.
“So, even though I stated before that I was heartbroken, it was extremely tough for me to say goodbye. I never said goodbye to them because I couldn’t. I couldn’t stand in front of them because I knew I’d collapse. So I interacted with a large number of people on an individual basis.”
Manager’s tenure was filled with numerous what-if moments.
Where Marsch deserves credit is that the job he was taking on was not an easy one. It speaks everything about how much we adored Marcelo Bielsa that fans were shouting his name at 4-0 down against a fairly mediocre Tottenham team in what would be his final match.
Marsch did a good job initially of giving Bielsa credit while also ramping up the tone. However, Leeds fans may be forgiven for believing that if he had left before the World Cup break, our chances of survival would have improved.
From the outside, his wins over Liverpool and Bournemouth appeared to have saved his job. And not appointing another manager during the January transfer window proved extremely costly.
