Mateo Joseph sends Daniel Farke message for more Leeds United first-team opportunities in international display
Mateo Joseph has sent a message to Daniel Farke about why he should be receiving more first-team opportunities at Leeds United with his latest international display.
The 20-year-old scored in the first half for England U-20s with an improvised backheel as they secured a 3-2 victory over Germany despite being reduced to 10 men.
The Spanish-born forward was also joined in the starting lineup by fellow Whites player Darko Gyabi, while Archie Gray returned to Thorp Arch before the game following a pre-arranged agreement with the Three Lions staff.
The game was another opportunity for Joseph to show what he could do on the international stage as he scored his third goal for England at youth level.
After joining from Espanyol in January 2022, he made his senior Whites debut in the 1-0 Carabao Cup defeat to Wolves in November last year.
He racked up an impressive record for the U23s side throughout last season, having scored 15 goals in 19 appearances in Premier League 2.
That hasn’t helped Joseph’s chances this season, though, after he is yet to make a single first-team appearance since Daniel Farke joined the club despite being named on the bench twice in Championship games.
Speaking to the Yorkshire Evening Post on Wednesday (18 October), he admitted that it’s going to be “difficult” to get into the German’s first-team plans, but that he is working hard to try and get as many minutes as he can at Elland Road.
“Obviously it’s a difficult task to get into the Leeds team,” said Joseph. “They obviously have a quality squad. They’re playing really good now. But obviously [I’m] working hard, trying to get as many minutes as I can in a club like Leeds and just put my head down and work hard.
“Daniel is a great coach from what I’ve seen. He’s pushing the young players, he was surprised with all the young players in the pre-season.
“It’s gonna be difficult because there are senior players with good performances this year. But it’s trying to get in that team [doing] whatever is possible.”
The forward is fully aware of the main obstacle in front of him to gain more opportunities in the senior side, with Farke having a number of excellent attacking options at his disposal.
Joseph’s recent performances for the Whites and England youth teams are certainly not going to have harmed his prospects of pushing for a place on the bench, though, as the German is no stranger to handing youngsters chances.
Perhaps if that isn’t going to be the case over the next few months, then a loan spell could help stand the forward in good stead as he looks to gain more experience in a first-team environment.
In other Leeds United news, a Whites star has revealed why David Beckham was “lucky” following a controversial incident.