Daniel Farke slams Leeds United critics amid sacking rumours: ‘This is not FIFA’

Leeds United manager Daniel Farke is under pressure due to a distressing run of results. However, he is unlikely to bend down in the face of criticism and is set to stick to his principles.

Farke changed his tactics at the break against Manchester City as his side seemed destined for a meek defeat. His team responded with a positive performance in the second half despite the 3-2 defeat.

Leeds observers have been debating whether Farke will now shift to the 5-3-2 that worked at the Etihad or revert back to his favoured 4-3-3 formation against Chelsea.

The manager’s critics have often accused him of not being tactically flexible and sticking to his ways. The Leeds boss has given a strong defence of his principles.

Daniel Farke takes on his Leeds United critics and complaints about formations

Farke has often been implored to change his tactics to get results. However, the Leeds boss stuck to his way until the second half against Manchester City this weekend.

However, he stressed that changing formations does not necessarily lead to different results, as the real game is not like its virtual counterpart.

The Leeds boss insisted that he doesn’t deserve credit for the second-half performance as he feels a formation means nothing if the players do not execute the plans on the pitch.

“Never about doing something as a manager, and it works”, Farke said in a press conference.

“We had a really good second half, but the manager doesn’t deserve praise; it’s the players.

“Not like FIFA, where you change formation, and everything works. You can have an idea, but more important is the execution on the pitch.

“Second-half excellent, but not happy for myself, just happy for the players.”

Farke needs to change if he wants to save his job at Leeds

The Leeds manager is running out of room at Elland Road, and a couple more mistakes, he may be out of the door as patience is running thin with the owners.

Farke is likely to get sacked if Leeds lose their next two home games against Chelsea and Liverpool. So, the margin for error for him is wafer-thin.

The 5-3-2 worked against Manchester City, and with Daniel James out for months, this may be a good time for Farke to start two up top against Chelsea on Wednesday night.

Brenden Aaronson’s return to the team will turn the fans against Farke even before the game kicks off against the Blues. A change in formation may just calm some of the nerves.

Make no mistake, if Chelsea dominate Leeds at Elland Road, the fans will turn on Farke quickly, as the supporters are already on the edge after six defeats in seven.

Another bad defeat could spell doom for Farke as Leeds manager. So, he must change to ensure that he gets a chance to dig the team out of this hole.