Two Victor Orta failures led to Marcelo Bielsa reward at Leeds United: View | OneFootball

Leeds United reaped all the rewards from Marcelo Bielsa's appointment in 2018 - and they can thank two prior Victor Orta failures for that

Victor Orta certainly had his own shortcomings at Leeds United, but he secured success for Andrea Radrizzani with the 2018 appointment of Marcelo Bielsa, who he had previously tried and failed to lure elsewhere.

Orta held the position of Leeds' sporting director for a six-year period between 2017 and 2023, and his time with the club yielded the greatest highs in recent history alongside the real shortcomings which ultimately resulted in his departure following relegation from the Premier League.

The Spanish chief is not fondly remembered by Leeds supporters, who were left outraged last summer when it emerged that many of his expensive purchases had loan clauses, enabling them to leave Elland Road after relegation.

Orta spent significant sums on players who simply flattered to deceive and never returned the club's investment, such as Diego Llorente, Luis Sinisterra, and, of course, Jean-Kevin Augustin. The less said about the latter, the better.

However, he struck gold for then owner Radrizzani with the appointment of Bielsa in 2018, which proved an absolute masterstroke.

Leeds United's Marcelo Bielsa success was helped by past Victor Orta failures

Quite arguably, Bielsa's success in West Yorkshire never would have happened without Orta's past failings, as he tried and failed to bring him to both Sevilla and Zenit St Petersburg during previous stints.

That is not to say Orta neccesarily deserves all the credit for the success which followed Bielsa's arrival, but his relationship and past courtship certainly played an instrumental role in luring the iconic Argentine to the club against all odds in the first place.

Back in 2019, Orta revealed how his history with Bielsa influenced the appointment and how Leeds were able to pull it off. He explained to Training Ground Guru: "We detected that in this moment of the history of Leeds United we needed a really big change, a really big revolution.

We needed a big investment in the Head Coach, because this club has a massive pressure around it and you need a big personality to manage it. We needed to build a club from a figure like this.

"I was in a car with Andrea [Radrizzani] and he said, ‘If you have all the money, if you can choose any coach, who would you choose?’ I told him and he said, ‘Call him’. It’s true.

"I had tried two times to get Marcelo Bielsa - once with Seville and once with Zenit. He is a reference for football. We tried at Seville, when he was leaving Chile, and when he arrived at Atletico (Bilbao) it was amazing. I always analyse his ideas and football. Even with his ups and downs, the quality of the football was amazing.

"I had the idea that he could say yes, but it was Andrea who gave me the bravery to say, ‘Come on, try, try. Why not try?’

"Marcelo is always evaluating the history, the fans, the challenge [before taking a job]. My impression was that he knew we could have a good link, because we had known each other for years, but my concern was if we could impress Marcelo about Leeds United. In the end, we achieved both goals.

"I met Marcelo with Andrea in Buenos Aires, and then with Angus [Kinnear, Leeds CEO] we had another meeting. Andrea was really impressed which, for me, was not a surprise, because I know Marcelo's way of work.

"In the end it happened and changed all the club and increased all the standards."

Marcelo Bielsa's success at Leeds United

Bielsa, who is among the most revered managers across the game, appeared an incredibly inspired appointment at the time and it definitely panned out that way.

He instantly transformed the culture and standards throughout the club, taking the squad to new and unprecedented heights and making Leeds look genuinely capable of returning to the Premier League after more than a decade of exile.

They fell agonisingly short of doing so in Bielsa's first season by losing to Derby County in an infamous play-off semi final at Elland Road, but the slate was wiped clean and Leeds relieved themselves of any potential hangover the season after.

Under the tuition of Bielsa, Leeds would go on to lift the 2019/20 Championship title at a canter before impressing back in the big time with a 10th-placed finish the season after.

Of course, it went sour soon after and Bielsa was controversially relieved of his duties, with Leeds replacing him with Jesse Marsch as they only avoided relegation on the final day. However, Bielsa's legacy at Elland Road lives on to this day and it will take some beating, make no mistake about that.