It appears to be Marcelo Bielsa week in South America, where every man and his dog has something to say on the former Leeds United boss.
Raphinha is the latest to add his voice to that growing chorus in a conversation with GE Globo, detailing what his relationship with the Argentine was like when they worked together at Leeds United.
For those that don’t know, Bielsa has found himself in the firing line this week after Luis Suarez came out to criticise him and the manner in which he’s doing things with Uruguay.
Bielsa has been impressing with the South American nation since taking charge in May 2023, leading them to big wins over the likes of Brazil and Argentina and a points per game ratio of 2.12.
He’s earned himself plenty of fans but not Suarez, who, weeks after announcing his international retirement, has decided to hit out at the Uruguay boss.
He seems unhappy with certain things the former Leeds boss has done since his arrival, particularly with his attitude towards the players and the instructions he was giving them.
That’s led Raphinha, who made 56 appearances under Bielsa at Leeds United, to be asked about him, and he admits there were fights with him at times.
“In my opinion, I think everyone has a difficult side to deal with, they have a very complicated side to dealing with people or situations,” he said.
“I guess, in my opinion, everyone is different. Everyone has difficulty managing something at a certain point. I don’t know what happens in the Uruguay team, what I know is what happened to me in Leeds.
“I had good times and bad times with him, naturally, like a big family, for example. I was with a lot of people inside the house, naturally conflicts will happen, good times and bad times will happen. I believe that within football, in a club, in a national team, it ends up being the same. There are moments that are good, there are moments that are not so good.
“Personally, I had my good moments and my bad moments with him, but I can only be grateful for everything I am today, for almost everything I am today. Where I am today was thanks to him.
“I just have to thank him for everything I experienced with him in these two years. It was a year and a half that I lived with him. We had our frictions; we had our fights. Some uglier than others, but we had a lot of good moments too. As I told you, I think that inside your house not everything is roses.”
