Jesse Marsch: The American coach Leeds United hope can keep them in the Premier League

The only exposure some English football fans will have had to Jesse Marsch is the expletive-riddled half-time team-talk he delivered that almost inspired Red Bull Salzburg to one of the great comebacks in a match against Liverpool at Anfield.

The clip of his rousing speech quickly went viral in the aftermath of the Champions League tie in October 2020, in which his side came back from 3-1 down to draw level, before losing 4-3.

It was a demonstration of the American's eloquence, leadership and fight, with his side's second-half display an encapsulation of his tactical nous and style — high intensity, high pressing, going for the win.

The 48-year-old is going to need all of that and more if he is to achieve the target struggling Leeds have set him as Marcelo Bielsa's successor.

For some Leeds fans, Marsch is already starting from a negative position purely by virtue of not being Bielsa.

The Argentine was adored by Whites supporters and embraced by a club and city to which he brought not only brilliant, fearless football but an integrity and humility not often evident in modern football and a unity and purpose rarely seen at Elland Road this century.

His successor will not only have to reckon with Bielsa's metaphorical shadow but also the more tangible representations of his impact — murals of him across the city and an as-yet-unannounced «permanent tribute» by the club.

Marsch will be helped by the fact he inherits a club transformed by Bielsa — now modern, forward-thinking, with much-improved facilities and a culture in tune with Billy Bremner's famous mantra 'side before self, every time'.

However, they are also a side currently in free-fall in the Premier League, having taken just one point from the last 18 available to leave