Seven things you need to know about new Leeds United manager, Jesse Marsch

Seb Sternik
28 February 2022

With Jesse Marsch announced as new Leeds United manager, Planet Sport takes an in-depth look at the former RB Leipzig boss.

Marsch was confirmed as the new man in charge just a day on from the sacking of his predecessor, Marcelo Bielsa.

It's fair to say that Leeds - and English football as a whole - will never see another manager of the Argentine's calibre.

His personality, philosophy and football mentality will go down in folklore as the Premier League says goodbye to the 66-year-old.

Following a run of five defeats in six games, Leeds find themselves down in 16th and currently sit just two points above the bottom-three.

With Bielsa now officially gone, Marsch has been drafted in to try and stabilise the situation at Elland Road.

Question is, who exactly is the 48-year-old? Planet Sport looks at seven things you need to know about the former RB Leipzig boss.

Three-time MLS Cup winner

Before becoming a manager, Marsch enjoyed a successful playing career which saw him represent the likes of DC United, Chicago Fire and Chivas USA.

The midfielder won eight major trophies throughout his career, including three successive MLS Cups between 1996 and 1998.

The first two league triumphs came during his time with DC United as the club completed season doubles in 1996 and 1997.

Marsch moved on to Chicago Fire in 1998 and brought the winning mentality with him as the club powered to a season double of their own.

Helped USA shine at the 2010 World Cup

Statistically speaking, America's second-best World Cup run came in 2010.

Bob Bradley's team finished top of their group and bowed out in the round-of-16 following a dramatic extra-time defeat to Ghana.

A year before the tournament, Marsch retired from playing and joined Bradley's coaching team as the assistant manager.

Together, they oversaw an impressive campaign in South Africa before going their separate ways in 2011.

MLS record holder

Following his spell with the United States, Marsch then became the inaugural manager of Montreal Impact.

The Canadian side had just entered the MLS, and Marsch was the man trusted with getting the project off to a good start. Instead, the American was out of the door 16 months later after losing 17 of his 36 matches.

Despite the disappointing start to his managerial career, Marsch rallied and made history with the New York Red Bulls just a few years later.

The 48-year-old would go on to win the Supporters' Shield in 2015 and claimed the coveted Coach of the Year award in that same season.

Moreover, Marsch stamped his name in record books by winning more games than any other New York Red Bulls manager in history - 76 victories from 151 matches.

Worked under Ralf Rangnick

Marsch remained with the Red Bull brand in 2018, but moved from New York to Leipzig in order to become Ralf Rangnick's assistant.

Both men helped RB Leipzig to a third-place finish in the Bundesliga and also reached the German Cup final, which they ultimately lost 3-0 against Bayern Munich.

Marsch moved on to Red Bull Salzburg in 2019, but he clearly impressed Rangnick who recently considered bringing the American to Manchester United in order to take up a coaching role with the first team.

Dominated Austria

Marsch enjoyed the best spell of his managerial career at Red Bull Salzburg where he won 64 of his 94 games and led the club to successive league-cup doubles.

That shouldn't come as a surprise considering his side boasted such players as Hungarian wonder kid Dominik Szoboszlai, Liverpool forward Takumi Minamino, Wolves star Hee-chan Hwang, Leicester's striker Patson Daka and Borussia Dortmund superstar, Erling Haaland.

In his first season, Marsch won the league title with a 12-point advantage over second-placed Rapid Vienna.

A year later, that advantage grew to 15 points as the American began to make waves in the managerial game.

Gave Man City and Liverpool a run for their money

Red Bull Salzburg had an opportunity to take on Europe's best after qualifying for the Champions League in 2019.

One of their group games came against Liverpool at Anfield, and Marsch's men were desperate to make an impact.

The team got off to a dreadful start and fell 3-0 down inside the opening 36 minutes.

However, the Austrian side rallied and produced a sensational fightback as goals from Hee-Chan, Minamino and Haaland levelled the score with 30 minutes left to play.

Liverpool ultimately showed their quality and won the match thanks to Mo Salah's late winner, but it's fair to say the Austrians gave the Reds a run for their money.

Two years later, Marsch was looking to make a similar impact with RB Leipzig as his German side took on Manchester City in the group stage.

When the two sides met at the Etihad back in September, the English champions proved too strong as they powered to a 6-3 victory.

However, Leipzig certainly had their moments as Christopher Nkunku's hat-trick pulled the score back to 4-3.

Ultimately, there was to be no comeback as Joao Cancelo and Gabriel Jesus completed an impressive victory.

Third American Premier League manager?

The Premier League might be 30 years old but throughout its history there have only ever been two American managers.

The first of the two was Bob Bradley who endured a disappointing 85-day run as the manager of Swansea City.

His appointment appeared to be doomed from the start, as many fans were left disappointed by his arrival.

Their worries soon translated into poor results as Bradley's 11-game run included two wins, two draws and seven defeats. Unsurprisingly, the American was gone after just three months.

David Wagner - who was born in Germany but has an American citizenship - became the second USA national to manager in the Premier League after guiding Huddersfield Town to a shock promotion back in 2017.

Despite having the lowest budget in the division, Huddersfield miraculously avoided relegation in their first season back. However, the Yorkshire outfit failed to replicate that feat in the following campaign as they dropped to the bottom of the standings.

Wagner was sacked in January 2019, but that didn't stop the Terriers from returning to the Championship.

Fast forward to 2022 and Jesse Marsch has become the third American manager to work in the Premier League. Considering Leeds United's current form, the 48-year-old will need to pull off something special in order to make his top-tier stay a lengthy one.