How much Marcelo Bielsa paid Leeds United after being fined for spying on Derby County - Was it worth it? | OneFootball

Marcelo Bielsa paid the fine when Leeds United were caught spying on Derby County back in 2019

Marcelo Bielsa will go down as one of Leeds United’s most fondly remembered managers in their history for the work he achieved at Elland Road.

While he is most well remembered for leading the Whites back to the Premier League after a 16-year absence, Spygate is perhaps the most notorious moment of his entire tenure.

The Yorkshire outfit were allegedly caught spying on Derby County’s training session ahead of an upcoming league clash between the two clubs in January 2019.

This led to the Whites receiving a fine from the EFL for their role in the incident, with the club chasing promotion to the Premier League, which was paid by the manager.

Here we look at how much Bielsa paid, and whether the whole ordeal was worth it for Leeds during their push for a place back to the Premier League.

How much Marcelo Bielsa paid in Spygate fine

It was reported by the BBC in February 2019 that Leeds were fined £200,000 by the EFL for their role in the Spygate incident.

The Argentine revealed later in the campaign that he made the decision to pay the fee, taking responsibility for the controversy.

"As we are clarifying things, I think it's important to add two things not linked to this subject," said Bielsa, via Sky Sports.

"The sanction I received that the federation gave us - £200,000.

"It's a financial sanction the club received - not against me. But I am responsible for it and that's why I paid from my pocket."

The subject came back to the fore later in the campaign, with Leeds facing Derby in the play-off semi-finals after their third-place finish in the Championship table.

This went on to add an extra dimension to their eventual clash with Frank Lampard’s side.

However, Bielsa had downplayed the significance of the spying with a sensational 70-minute press conference days after the incident initially occurred.

The veteran coach delivered a PowerPoint presentation discussing the situation to shocked media outlets, detailing the depth of his analysis on opposition teams.

Spygate wasn’t worth it for Leeds

Leeds were caught spying on Derby ahead of their 11 January clash in 2019, a game they ultimately won 2-0.

So on that basis, it might be easy to suggest that spying on Lampard’s side in training was worthwhile as it helped the team to a valuable three points.

But, upon greater reflection, the whole ordeal was just not worth it for Leeds due to the circus that followed.

Leeds went on to lose to the Rams in the play-off semi-finals, and were consigned to another year in the Championship.

The media attention surrounding Bielsa was a distraction, and he even admitted himself during that 70-minute presentation that the information gained from spying on training was a tiny fraction of the preparation.

The 63-year-old claimed that it was typical to spy on other teams, but that it wasn’t a major part of their learning process ahead of games.

"I observed all the rivals we played against and watched the training sessions of all opponents," said Bielsa, via the Guardian.

"So why did I send someone to watch them? Just because I thought I wasn’t violating the norm.

"All the information I need to clarify [my tactics] I gather without watching the training session of the opponent … but we feel guilty if we don’t work enough.