Jesse Marsch sacked, what went wrong at Leeds United?

• Leeds United have become the latest club to sack their manager as a result of a poor run of form
• Leeds are slightly above the relegation zone and have sacked Jesse Marsch 
• SportsLeo looks at what really went wrong for Jesse Marsch at Leeds United

Another person perishes. Leeds decided to fire manager Jesse Marsch after the American presided over a 1-0 loss at the City Ground on Sunday.

Prior to the weekend match, Marsch’s team had gone six games without a Premier League victory, and Nottingham Forest’s victory served as the breaking point.

Despite the fact that Marsch led Leeds to safety last season after Marcelo Bielsa’s tenure ended, he leaves the team in a similar precarious situation less than a year later. Due to Leeds’ superior goal differential over Everton, they are currently ranked 17th in the standings and are only able to avoid the relegation zone.

A change was required, but where did it go wrong for Marsch at Elland Road?

Raphinha exit

Raphinha, a Brazilian winger who joined from Rennes in 2020, proved to be a revelation in the Premier League. He performed admirably under Bielsa before being crucial to Leeds’ survival under Marsch. Raphinha scored 11 goals last season, including one against Brentford on the penultimate day to keep his team in the top division.

Raphinha left Leeds United last summer for Barcelona and was influential in Leeds staying in the Premier League. | PHOTO: Eurosport |

But his outstanding campaign made a summer exit unavoidable. Europe’s finest hovered, but Barcelona swooped after Arsenal was priced out of a transfer. Leeds received £55 million for selling him, and the team moved fast to recruit a replacement.

Luis Sinisterra, Brenden Aaronson, and Wilfried Gnonto were among the wingers the team acquired last summer, but Raphinha’s absence has loomed large. Even though the aforementioned trio of newcomers have all had successful runs this season, especially Gnonto, they have only combined for four Premier League goals.

Overall, Raphinha’s departure has decreased Leeds’ capacity to create havoc over wide areas.

Hard Luck

There is no disputing that Marsch has had a few bad breaks. His Leeds team has generally been entertaining to watch, although there have been a few occasions when standout performances didn’t result in the winning score.

Leeds should be in a much more comfortable 12th spot and have amassed 25.87 points this season, according to Understat. Based on the xG and xGA, they recorded each of their 2022–2023 trips.

There are a few contests that stick out as instances when Leeds were extremely unlucky. They increased Aston Villa’s xG during their 2-1 loss at Villa Park in January, and Marsch’s team ought to have earned at least a point against Arsenal in October when Patrick Bamford missed a penalty in the 1-0 victory.

Such losses increased the strain on Marsch, who wanted to quickly change Leeds’ fortunes before they travelled to Nottingham on Sunday. The guests were impressive despite losing.

Jesse Marsch has been sacked by Leeds United almost a year after the Premier League side hired him. | PHOTO: Goal |

Poor defensive show

Since Leeds’ re-entry into the Premier League, their defence has never even come close to being reliable. Not under Marsch or Bielsa, for that matter.

With 43 goals allowed this season, Bournemouth has easily had the poorest defensive record in the Premier League. Only Southampton, Leicester, and Nottingham Forest allowed more players to enter than Leeds.

Throughout the course of the season, there have also been a number of disastrous defensive outings, such as losses to Brentford (5-2) and Tottenham (4-3), both of which they trailed three times.