Impossible for South American football to be same level as Europe, proclaims Marcelo Bielsa

It showcases just how far the drop has been for South American football and Marcelo Bielsa believes that the European leagues will be greater because of how big the gap has become now. The Leeds United head coach further added that South American football is also producing a fewer number of players because of the fact that they’re being taken as teenagers by European clubs, which only hurts the footballers and not the clubs.

"The gap is so big. It's impossible for South American football to be at the same level as Europe. If you look, South American leagues are providing fewer and fewer players for Europe because players are leaving their countries of origin before they have shone for the clubs they belong to,” Bielsa told Sky Sports.

"If you put him in a completely different and unknown place, instead of helping his development, you interrupt it. It is something which isn't investigated much, but the South American clubs often aren't the owners of these players. The players play for the clubs but they aren't the actual owners of them. Players of 15 years old have different owners to the clubs they belong to. It's a sad reality and it is difficult to explain,” he added.