Jamie Redknapp has Leeds United belief as average points to survive relegation revealed
Jamie Redknapp is confident Leeds United will avoid Premier League relegation after the 1-1 draw against Aston Villa on Saturday.
Daniel Farke’s team dropped two points late on at Villa Park on 21 February, with Tammy Abraham scoring in the 88th minute to cancel out Anton Stach’s brilliant first-half strike.
In the grand scheme of things, avoiding a loss away from home against the team third in the league table might not be the worst thing.
Redknapp believes that while in the past 31 points would’ve meant the West Yorkshire outfit would’ve been safe from relegation, they may need around 35 points this season to guarantee safety.
Daniel Farke has to make one Leeds United change after draw vs Aston Villa
Farke made some surprising changes to his starting lineup against Villa, with Jaka Bijol dropping to the bench and James Justin playing at centre-back.
The German manager made an immediate change after the break, with the Slovenia international coming on in place of Gabriel Gudmundsson.
Emery’s half-time team talk seemed to make a difference, with the home team looking threatening for most of the second half and securing a draw.
Speaking on Sky Sports Main Event on 21 February, Redknapp said, “I would say just looking at Leeds, they have momentum, they have quality. I like Aaronson, [Dominic] Calvert-Lewin. I think they’ve got enough quality in that team and a real togetherness. And the captain as well, I really like him in the midfield. They’re going to be alright. They’ve got that home fortress, which is so important.”
The former England international added, “Normally, on average, 31 points keeps you up, but this year it feels like it might be a bit more. We might go back to the 34, 35 points which it was a few years ago.”
Manchester City are up next for the West Yorkshire outfit at Elland Road next on 28 February in the Premier League, and Farke should take Ilia Gruev out of the team after his underwhelming performance at Villa Park and replace him with Lukas Nmecha.
Elland Road embarrassment on cards after Daniel Farke decision
49ers Enterprises have faced criticism from some sections of Leeds fans for their lack of investment in the team over the last two transfer windows.
The Whites now find themselves in a relatively decent position to avoid relegation, and failure to do so won’t reflect well on the American owners at Elland Road.
In January, Facundo Buonanotte was the West Yorkshire outfit’s only first-team signing, but the Argentina international was left out of the squad for the trip to Villa Park.
Farke deserved to be backed financially midway through the season, but instead, all the 49ers could muster was signing the 21-year-old on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion, and now it doesn’t look like the German manager even trusts the winter signing to have a say in the West Yorkshire outfit’s season.
For more in-depth coverage on Leeds, fans can visit Football Insider and have a look at their content.