Leeds United’s 2-1 win over Sunderland on Monday night seems to have decisively turned the race for automatic promotion towards the Yorkshire giants. While the gap with second-place Sheffield United is just two points, the Whites have a seven-point buffer over Burnley who are sitting just outside the top two. Leeds are now being backed to win the Championship and look like the biggest favourites to get the job done in the next couple of months. However, Daniel Farke is aware that nothing is done and he now has a points tally he wants his team to aim to ensure they get promoted to the top flight at the end of the season.
It would get increasingly hard for Daniel Farke to play down the anticipation of promotion if his team continued to win games in the coming weeks. However, the Leeds United boss has to ensure that the players remain grounded and focused.
Last season’s playoff final heartbreak could be used as a good motivation to keep the players on their toes and ensure that they do not start taking things for granted in the race for automatic promotion.
However, with each passing game, Leeds are getting closer to their goal and the fans are getting more and more excited about returning to the Premier League at the end of the season.
The Leeds manager has been trying to make sure that his players do not look too far ahead but the German realises that the goal is in sight and he has now set a points total his team need to hit to get promoted.
‘We need this amount of points to finish in the top two’ – Daniel Farke
Leeds sit at the summit of the Championship table with 72 points from 33 Championship games and look poised to get promoted to the Premier League this season.
It appears if Leeds equal their 90-point tally from last season, they would earn automatic promotion but for the moment, nothing is guaranteed.
However, Farke has a tally in his mind and revealed that 20 more points from their last 13 league games will ensure them a Premier League berth for next season.
He insisted that nothing is done yet and there are several tough games, both home and away, that his Leeds team will have to negotiate before they can celebrate getting promoted.
But it appears the Leeds boss is eyeing seven wins or six wins and two draws to ensure promotion to the Premier League.
“Yes, there’s a gap and that’s definitely good. But sadly there are more than just four or five games to go”, Farke was quoted as saying by the Star.
Sadly, we have still many, many games to go.
“If we were to stop right now on 72 points, we would perhaps make it into the top six, but it’s not guaranteed. Hopefully, we won’t lose all the last 13 games, so I think it’s a major step.
“But we have to definitely reach the playoffs and in order to be there in the top two with automatic promotion, yeah, we need to win 20 more points. And for that, it’s a long road. Each and every game is complicated.
“We have difficult away games and challenging home games and for that, we have to maintain the momentum to keep it going. So nothing is won yet. On 72 points, we will never be in the top two so we have to win many more points and we want to keep going.”
20 points? No one will bet against this Leeds side
Their performances since the turn of the year have ensured Leeds have a bigger margin for error in the race for promotion at the business end of the season.
Leeds can afford to lose a few games and still get promoted but Farke’s side have shown little appetite for defeats and have been beaten just three times this season.
The Whites have been looking unrelenting over the last few weeks and the way they dug deep to beat Sunderland on Monday night showed the spirit inside the squad.
  Can you name the missing sponsor in these 10 Leeds United shirts?
Last season’s playoff final heartbreak has spurred them on this season and the Leeds players look determined to ensure that they not only finish top two but win the league.
Farke has kept his players focused on the job at hand and the team seem to have shifted gears in the last couple of weeks to swat away some good sides.
If 20 more points from the last 13 league games get Leeds promoted, it would be hard to find anyone who would be willing to bet against the Yorkshire giants this season.
