Mateusz Klich is one of the first players that come to mind when reflecting on the Marcelo Bielsa era at Leeds United. Although the Argentine began to use Klich from the bench more in the Premier League, Bielsa named the Pole as a starter in all but one game in the two years Leeds spent in the Championship under him.
The one game he missed was the game immediately after Leeds had secured promotion back to the Premier League, with Klich appearing to have partied harder than any of his teammates and him rotated out of the side. The midfielder's celebrations in the empty stands and his breakdancing on the pitch after the Whites defeated Derby on that day endeared him to Leeds fans even further, while his social media accounts were essential viewing across the promotion weekend.
Klich's journey to a cult hero under Bielsa was a particularly surprising one, given that the former FC Twente man had been loaned out from the club mid-way through his first season. He made only four appearances under Thomas Christensen and his performance in an away loss against Cardiff City, in which he slipped over in the run-up to Cardiff scoring, seemed to lose him the trust of his manager.
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However, when Bielsa joined the club, the Pole was put into the 'maybe' group, as Bielsa split the squad into players he wanted to keep, players he wanted to leave and those he wasn't sure about yet. As pre-season went on, he began to work his way up the pecking order but Adam Forshaw and Ronaldo Vieira were ahead of him, with Kalvin Phillips the first-choice as the deepest midfielder. Then, an opportunity struck just as the season was starting. A bid came in for Vieira that the club felt they couldn't refuse and Forshaw broke his foot ahead of the opening day. Klich was in the starting XI as the Whites faced Championship favourites Stoke City.
It was Klich who got the Bielsa era off to a flier as he scored the opening goal in a stunning 3-1 victory that all who witnessed could barely believe. That was the beginning of a ten-goal and eight-assist season for the tireless midfielder, as Leeds just missed out on promotion. He scored another six and assisted five in his 45 appearances as the Whites went up as Champions the following year.
While his time as a guaranteed starter has been over for a while now, he has still made 68 appearances in the Premier League, scoring five goals and assisting seven. With him turning 32 today (June 13), it does feel that his role in the squad is likely to decrease even further going forwards, though.
Leeds are strongly linked to Bayern Munich's Marc Roca, who is thought to be another option for Leeds' midfield and not a replacement for Kalvin Phillips. That means Roca, Forshaw and Klich would all be battling for that spot next to Kalvin Phillips. That's without mentioning youngsters, Lewis Bate and Sam Greenwood, both of whom were given starts ahead of Klich late in the season.
In the case of Greenwood, Bielsa's successor, Jesse Marsch chose to give the 20-year-old his first Premier League start in the final game of the season with Leeds' Premier League status on the line, rather than starting Klich. That suggests that the American perhaps doesn't trust Leeds' number 43 in the same way that Bielsa did and images of the two men arguing on the touchline during the Whites 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace a few games before suggest that they might clash.
The question for Klich is whether he wants to remain at Elland Road as more of a bit-part player next season. His contract runs until June 2024 and a role as a backup player for a Premier League team at the age of 32 will see him well paid without the kind of sacrifice put on his body in recent years. With the five substitutes rule coming into the league next season, he will surely get opportunities and Leeds need more depth than last season so they can cope with injuries better than they did in 2021/22.
However, Leeds fans know a player who gives everything to the cause and a player who wants to play as many minutes as he can. It seems likely that he would not want to be relegated to a lower position in the squad, despite his obvious love for the club. As such, it wouldn't be too much of a surprise to see him move on. If that were to be the case, he would be waved goodbye as a hero, given his prominence in bringing the club back to where they felt they belonged.
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