Leeds United chief executive Angus Kinnear says the decision of the club's player and coaching staff to defer part of their wages during the ongoing suspension of football showed the mantra of "side over self" has returned to the club.

The Whites were one of the first clubs to confirm they were taking such an approach in the wake of the postponement of almost all football across the World, in order to ensure that all members of the club's staff can still be paid despite no income coming in from matchdays.

That "side over self" approach is one that manager Marcelo Bielsa has been keen to bring back to Leeds since his arrival in the summer of 2018, and Kinnear believes that decision to defer wages shows that the Argentinean has succeeded in doing that.

Speaking about what that deferral of wages meant for the club, Kinnear was quoted by Leeds Live as telling BT Sport: “When Marcelo took over under Andrea’s leadership, we wanted the club to feel the ‘side before self’ again, that’s something that I don’t think that in the last 15 years the club has had.

“The true unity between the board, the players and the supporters. Marcelo wanted to bring that back and I think it was wonderfully demonstrated at the start of this crisis when Liam Cooper and the senior players were some of the first in professional football to step-up and volunteer a wage deferral to help the rest of the club.

“They’ve done that to ensure that all the staff get paid their full wages throughout that period and I just think that is the sign of the unity we have in our dressing room, the belief that Marcelo has created and I think for supporters, it is a sign that the true Leeds United spirit is back.”

With nine games of the season still to be played at some point, Leeds are currently top of the Championship standings, seven points clear of third-placed Fulham.

The Verdict

This certainly feels like it was a big moment for Leeds.

While many other clubs have seemingly hesitated in deciding on their precise response to the current situation, the Whites moved quickly and decisively to help put a system in place that protects all members of the club in such a difficult time, and that is something they can only be praised for.

It is also interesting to note the credit that Kinnear has given Bielsa for his role in changing the attitude around Elland Road here, which appears to highlight the impact he is having at the club off the pitch as well as on it.