Not long after the play-off defeat to Derby County, Leeds United’s Pontus Jansson spoke to the Swedish media and explained just how gutted he was about the club’s failure to get promotion to the Premier League.
The feeling, at that time, was getting worse for him rather than better and there was an added frustration that he wasn’t able to take part due to an injury, the question of what might have been loomed large.
He’s still feeling bad about the whole thing, telling Dagens Nyheter it’s an “incredibly heavy” feeling, and adding: “It felt like ten positive months changed in one half. And that feeling still remains, until I come back. Because it wasn’t how it should end. Incredibly sour.”
Marcelo Bielsa’s future has been confirmed, with the much loved manager staying at Elland Road, and Jansson feels that’s crucial: “That means a lot to the club. He has changed the club in many ways, both on and off the pitch. Especially on. And we had the best team according to me, if you check statistically we were top two guaranteed. But there were little details that made us not succeed.
“There has been a lot of injuries. Huge differences in how we have trained and how we have played compared to previous years. Now he gets another year and we know what it is about now, now we know what to prepare for. I am convinced that the injuries will be fewer. It will be an incredibly exciting year for Leeds.”
And will Jansson be there to see it? There’s been rumours about a potential transfer, but nothing especially serious, and he was quizzed about the situation.
Certainly not pushing for a transfer, or flirting with other clubs, the 28 year old still isn’t ruling anything out: “I take it as it comes. Now it’s just the national team that matters, then it’s vacation and then it’s Leeds. Should there be anything that is relevant, it is between that club and Leeds, and then my agent does the rest. But I feel great, my wife and my child enjoy it.”
