The penultimate weekend of the 2018-19 Championship season could not have been more dramatic. It was a weekend of football that had enthralled fans, leaving them with a multitude of emotions, ranging from euphoria to despair. There was more to this weekend than just the events that unfolded, with backstories and reactions making for some very entertaining viewing.
Let’s recap all the incidents, shall we? In the weeks leading up to round 45 of 46, Leeds and Sheffield United were contenders for second spot, with Norwich seemingly destined to finish on top.
Match 45 saw chaos unleashed at Elland Road, in a must-win tie for Leeds, against the in-form Aston Villa side.
Victory was crucial for Leeds if they were to make automatic promotion a lingering reality. Controversially, Leeds took the lead in the second half through Klich, who scored despite a Villa player going down injured.The goal sent fans crazy, but it drove the Villa players insane. Brawls started out with Klich at the epicenter. In the midst of this, Villa’s Anwar El Ghazi saw red in a sub-plot with Leeds’ Bamford.
The resulting kick-off saw Villa get a near-free run for Adomah to equalize, as Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa instructed his players to allow the goal, much to the disagreement of defender Jansson. All of the aforementioned action in six minutes of absolute havoc. Talk about drama.
In much calmer times, Bielsa explained his decision to concede in an interview after the game, citing sportsmanship as the reason.
With Leeds capitalizing on an unfair advantage, the kick-off saw Bielsa scream, “Give the goal!” from the sidelines. Bielsa played the match in the true spirit of the game, and for that he has earned the plaudits.
He may have won the hearts of Leeds and Villa fans alike, despite losing out on automatic promotion, but he was defeated in the post match presser under hilarious circumstances.
The presser saw Bielsa struggle to pronounce final day opponents “Ipswich”. After fumbling multiple times, he said “I give up” in his native tongue, duly translated to those attending, who were left chuckling.
Marcelo Bielsa just deciding to give up on pronouncing “Ipswich” is the video you didn’t know you needed in your life. pic.twitter.com/3le9n8bjKi
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) April 28, 2019
