Nobody is undroppable at Elland Road
Daniel Farke has a warning for his own dressing room, and he delivered it without blinking. Not one player in his Leeds squad is guaranteed a shirt. Not even the captain.
“It’s realistic. You always have to deliver in the best league in the world,” the German told Sky Sports from Leeds’ training base, hours before Newcastle head south for Monday Night Football.
Leeds take a win and two draws into the game. Eleventh place, still unbeaten, and a manager whose position was openly questioned midway through last season. The mood has shifted at Elland Road. So has the target.
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Forty-seven points, and a refusal to settle
Leeds banked 47 points last season and were mathematically safe by April. Farke used to measure his work in points per game. He has thrown that yardstick away.
“We’re not addicted to one point per game,” he said. That sentence does a lot of work. Leeds finished 14th and lost just one of their last 12 league outings from mid-March onwards, a run that began when Farke abandoned his back four for a back three under real pressure. Chelsea were beaten. Liverpool were held. Jamie Carragher, watching Leeds on Monday Night Football back in May, said he felt like he was watching an established Premier League team.
That is the label Farke intends to keep. His summer brief was narrow. “We needed to freshen blood after a successful season but it’s about evolution not revolution.”
Less predictable, harder to plan for
The tweak this season is variety. Farke wants opponents guessing before, during and after the ninety minutes, which is why rotation in his squad is a weapon rather than a courtesy. “We’re working on being less predictable. It can be fun, too.”
Monday also brings his first managerial meeting with Matthias Jaissle. Two German coaches, two unbeaten starts, and four German managers now working in the Premier League. Newcastle have been every bit as awkward to break down.
Leeds wasted their chances at Brighton last week and Farke wants what he calls a return to clinical behaviour. Behind it sits a bigger number. “In the last 25 years, this club has never managed to play two solid Premier League seasons in a row. I want to do that.”
Kick-off at Elland Road is 8pm.
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