This summer, Leeds United made a huge effort to add quality and depth as they prepared for their Premier League return. The Whites targeted quality in multiple positions, spending over £100 million.
Leeds added a new goalkeeper, some defenders, two top quality midfielders and much needed depth in attack. So far this season, the signings have performed fairly well; it took some time for some of them to prove themselves. But overall, it is looking to be a solid window.
In light of what happened in the Newcastle game on Wednesday night, questions must be raised about Daniel Farke and this squad.
Daniel Farke makes honest assessment of Leeds United stars
After the defeat, the Leeds boss admitted he was forced into making some substitutions due to cramp and injury risks:
“Would’ve preferred to have Anton Stach during the whole game on the pitch but he has played each and every minute for us in the last games and he gave me the sign and he gets more and more tired and his quad starts to cramp and we couldnt take a risk of injury so I had to take him off and same in the end for Joe Rodon and Brenden Aaronson so I took them off.” he said to LUTV.
“Could argue that perhaps i should have left them on the pitch even with cramps perhaps we wouldn’t have conceded because we have conceded the goals when they were off but i think it’s my responsibility to take care of the lads once they have cramps and we need to bring fresh energy in, sadly it was not enough to calm the game completely down.”
Leeds boss does not trust some of the players in the squad
With the amount of money spent this summer, and the additions, it would be very strange for a manager to say such a thing. But looking closely at team selection this season, it is quite obvious that Daniel Farke is hesitant to play some players when the chance arrives.
He was heavily criticized for wanting a small squad in the Championship last year, which almost went south when injuries struck in the middle of the campaign. This season showed signs of that; he was reluctant to use James Justin, Jaka Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw in the early months. The 49ers must take this as a sign to add some reinforcements in January.
READ MORE: ‘If this is a penalty…’ – Daniel Farke slams costly referring decision against Newcastle.
