MX23RW : Wednesday, April 24 12:31:24| >> :60:97:97:

Marcelo Bielsa feels Patrick Bamford's England call-up is fully deserved

Marcelo Bielsa feels Patrick Bamford's England call-up is fully deserved
© Reuters
Patrick Bamford has been included in the Three Lions' senior squad for the first time for next month's World Cup qualifiers.

Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa has refused to take any credit for striker Patrick Bamford's England call-up.

Bamford has been included in the Three Lions' senior squad for the first time for next month's three World Cup qualifiers against Hungary, Andorra and Poland.

Bielsa said: "If I thought I had merit in that I would tell you.

"But sincerely, I see everything from the inside and I assure you, it's what he's done that has made him evolve and resulted in him being called up."

Bamford proved his critics wrong by finishing last season as the second-highest scoring Englishman in the Premier League behind Harry Kane with 17 goals.

Mohamed Salah and Bruno Fernandes were the only other players to score more than Bamford, who narrowly missed out on England selection for Euro 2020.

England coach Gareth Southgate said after naming his latest squad that the 27-year-old's progress under Bielsa "has been excellent".

Bamford's seven assists last season and one this time around have placed him in the Premier League's top 10, and joint fifth among English players.

Bielsa said: "I'm happy. I think he's made a lot of effort to be called up and finally he has achieved it. From my point of view he deserves it. I hope it's the start of his evolution as an international player."

The Argentinian said Bamford's improved conversion rate was a big factor in his call-up.

"The fact that he's increased his effectivity has had a good consequence on the evaluation of his game," Bielsa added.

"There are centre-forwards who have few chances at goal and some who have plenty of chances.

"Bamford usually has chances during the games and for him to have improved his range of efficiency has been an important step."

Bamford was on the bench for the midweek Carabao Cup win against Crewe and is expected back in the starting line-up for Sunday's Premier League game at Burnley.

Leeds, who have taken one point from their first two league matches, won 4-0 on their previous visit to Turf Moor in May.

Rodrigo scored twice in an impressive display in that win and will be hoping to continue after his recall to the starting line-up against Crewe.

Bielsa said Adam Forshaw and Diego Llorente had both come through unscathed after returning from injury on Tuesday night, but Robin Koch remained doubtful due to a pubis injury.

ID:461117:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect3039:

Click here for more stories about Patrick Bamford

Click here for more stories about Leeds United

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa on August 24, 2021
Read Next:
Marcelo Bielsa backs Adam Forshaw to play major role for Leeds
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Leicester CityLeicester443041086394794
2Leeds UnitedLeeds44279880374390
3Ipswich TownIpswich432611685533289
4Southampton442591085612484
5West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom4420121267442372
6Norwich CityNorwich442191477611672
7Hull City431812136254866
8Coventry CityCoventry4217121366521463
9Middlesbrough44189176460463
10Preston North EndPreston44189175661-563
11Cardiff CityCardiff44195205061-1162
12Bristol City441611175147459
13Sunderland44168205251156
14Swansea CitySwansea441511185762-556
15Watford441217155958153
16Millwall441411194355-1253
17Stoke CityStoke441311204460-1650
18Queens Park RangersQPR441311204157-1650
19Blackburn RoversBlackburn441310215874-1649
20Plymouth ArgylePlymouth441212205869-1148
21Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds44138233968-2947
22Birmingham CityBirmingham441210224864-1646
23Huddersfield TownHuddersfield44917184774-2744
RRotherham UnitedRotherham44412283285-5324


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!