Daniel Farke sack verdict shared at Leeds United after ‘unfathomable’ development
Don Goodman does not believe Daniel Farke’s job should be called into question if Leeds United miss out on promotion to the Premier League.
The Whites finished behind Leicester City and Ipswich Town in the battle for a top-two finish, meaning they have had to settle for play-offs.
Leeds played out a 0-0 draw with Norwich City in their semi-final first leg and are favourites to advance to the final at Wembley later this month.
Given the “mess” he inherited upon taking over at Elland Road last summer, Goodman believes Farke deserves praise for his work to date.
“Farke has done a brilliant job overall,” he told MOT Leeds News. “I always elude to the fact how difficult it must have been for him last year. Even last summer with all the takeover stuff, he was the one rolled out by Leeds United to answer questions – that is not his domain.
“Then there was the situation with players wanting to leave, going on strike, many ultimately leaving. It was a mess he inherited. In the circumstances, it’s not a surprise they started slow.
“Overall, 90 points would normally take you up. You can’t say he’s failed as far as I’m concerned. Individual mistakes are more to blame in the past few weeks.
“Unfortunately for Leeds, the international break, a couple of injuries and fatigue has disrupted them massively – more than you could have ever imagined. We’re talking about a team that went 13 unbeaten, winning 12 of those.
“To go from that to, after the international break, losing four and drawing a couple out of eight is unfathomable really. There have been too many individual mistakes and they have not been ruthless enough in front of goal. That is ultimately why they finished third.”
Mixed campaign for Daniel Farke at Leeds United
Goodman is spot on in pointing out that Farke did indeed inherit a mess at Elland Road last summer, not helped by the appointment dragging out.
Players were leaving even after the campaign had started, while Willy Gnonto infamously went on strike in an attempt to force an exit.
It was not until a few months into the season that things truly settled down and Leeds then went on a remarkable run of form to start 2024.
Ultimately, promotion is the only goal for Leeds this season, and now there is only one route left in order to achieve that aim.
With Wembley 90 minutes away, and then either Southampton or West Brom awaiting, there is no reason Farke cannot succeed in that mission.
In other Leeds United news, one player had a 3/10 shocker in the first-leg draw against Norwich.
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