Isaac Schmidt must step up under Farke amid agency change news at Leeds
Leeds United outcast Isaac Schmidt could have the perfect chance to prove himself as drama breaks out at Elland Road.
The Whites have had a superb season to this point and that was only made better with a 3-1 win against Sheffield United on Monday (24 February).
Late strikes from Joel Piroe and Ao Tanaka secured three points and made it three wins from three to open a five-point gap at the top of the Championship.
With that being said, the last thing that Daniel Farke needs is for any issues to emerge in LS11 but that may now be on the cards.
Junior Firpo in agency and contract drama at Leeds United
The Swiss defender signed for the West Yorkshire outfit during the summer transfer window but has gone on to make just seven league appearances and no starts.
This is likely to have come as a surprise to the 25-year-old who has regularly found himself behind Firpo in the pecking order at Elland Road.
Despite this, the former St. Gallen ace could be set to earn a regular spot in the side under Farke if the Dominican Republic international’s contract standoff continues.
The former Barcelona man is out of contract at the end of this season and has been surrounded by constant noise so far this campaign.
To add to this discourse, Firpo has now signed with agency, You First, who will represent the defender throughout this key period of his career.
It is unclear how this could affect negotiations over a new deal between the 28-year-old and Leeds but it could prove to be the perfect storm to allow Schmidt to step in and take advantage.
Schmidt must step up for Leeds United under Farke
With such limited time remaining in the season, there is every chance that Firpo could be dropped in the coming weeks if his contract scenario isn’t resolved.
As Farke hopefully looks ahead to a spot in the Premier League next season he will be keen to take stock in the final weeks of the second-tier campaign.
| Position | Team | Points | Goal difference |
| 1 | Leeds United | 75 | +50 |
| 2 | Sheffield United | 70 | +22 |
| 3 | Burnley | 68 | +34 |
| 4 | Sunderland | 62 | +19 |
This could allow Schmidt to come into the starting 11 for the first time in place of Firpo and if that was to be the case, he must take that opportunity with both hands.
The Whites haven’t truly seen what the Swiss defender has to add to the side at Elland Road but will want to before potentially securing promotion at the end of the season.
It will certainly be interesting to see if Leeds’ number 33 is ready to take on the challenge of starting weekly in the Championship if Firpo’s mind isn’t made up.