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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
When Patrick Bamford arrived from Middlesbrough in a deal worth up to £10m last season you’d be forgiven for thinking the talented forward would score more than nine goals.
In truth, his debut campaign at Elland Road was a bit of a disappointment.
He spent much of the first half of the season on the treatment table before the second half of the term was dominated by controversy.
Against Aston Villa, the 25-year-old decided to throw himself to the ground after an incident with Anwar El Ghazi, although replays indicated he hadn’t been touched.
However, after serving a ban, he was then booked for diving against Derby in the play-offs.
For all his talent, his ability to do something daft was tarnishing his reputation.
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On the chalkboard
Bamford was one of the few seasoned professionals to actually make Leeds’ 16-man tour squad for Australia.
However, recent comments from the former Chelsea man suggest that he could be about to turn his reputation around for the better.
Per quotes from the BBC, he was concerned about changing the minds of doubters. He said:
“Once I’ve put that in people’s minds it’s going to be hard to change that.
“It’s something I’ve got to do over the next few years. Looking back, I regret it. I maintain he touched me but I milked it and made a stupid deal of it.
“I wouldn’t do it again and it’s something I have to learn from.”
After the incident with El Ghazi, Bamford appeared to show no remorse considering his dive in the play-offs too, yet this is a huge indicator that he has found a greater sense of maturity, which can only help Leeds’ cause.
The 2018/19 campaign will have come as a major frustration for the striker who failed to live up to expectations, making a name for himself by playacting rather than for finding the back of the net.
However, with this fresh and mature approach from the Leeds man, he can make not only himself a better footballer, but he can also help Bielsa’s side go to the next level too.
After all, this is someone who once scored 17 goals in the second tier of English football for Boro.
It’s those heights which he’ll hope to replicate and after seemingly discovering a higher level of maturity, perhaps Bamford is now in a place to deliver it once again.
It’s now down to his own mind and Bielsa to keep him in check.