Were Leeds harsh to sack Jesse Marsch?

Leeds harsh to sack Jesse Marsch after less than a year as boss


Jesse Marsch has been sacked as Leeds head coach after seven games without a Premier League victory.

Marsch, who was appointed as Marcelo Bielsa’s replacement in February last year, lost his job a day after a 1-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest.

He won 11 of 37 games - eight of 32 in the league - and found himself a target for angry fans following defeat at the City Ground.

The former RB Leipzig boss leaves the club 17th in the table, above the relegation zone only on goal difference.


Analysis: Harsh on Marsch

Sporting Life football editor Joe Townsend

Less than a year after Marcelo Bielsa was ejected from Elland Road after a February to forget Jesse Marsch is gone just a game into that same month and it's hard to shake the same feeling; it's harsh.

Blue = good (positive xG process) | Orange = bad (negative xG process)
Blue = good (positive xG process) | Orange = bad (negative xG process)

Bielsa was sacked on the back of an exceptionally tough run of games - losing to Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham - with an injury-ravaged squad and although Marsch hasn't had the same run of fixtures, the data says he's doing a pretty good job.

Leeds may be 17th and only out of the relegation zone on goal difference, but they rank 11th in the top flight according to the underlying numbers.

In the Premier League, Marsch's Leeds outperformed Bielsa's on almost every data point.

Bielsa v Marsch

Our model currently forecasts a 16th-place finish for the Whites, should they simply continue to perform at their current rate - that's without factoring in the impact their January signings of Weston McKennie, Georginio Rutter and Max Wober should have.

Leeds looked as though they'd gone all in Marsch, finally moving on from Marcelo.

Turns out not.

Corberan Pochettino
ALSO READ: Who next for Leeds?

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