Daniel Farke explains scenario where he would have kept Leeds United loanee Sam Greenwood at Elland Road this season
Daniel Farke would have kept Sam Greenwood at Leeds United this season if he were allowed to bring players on specifically to take set-pieces, describing him as “second to none”.
Forward Greenwood was allowed to depart on loan for Middlesbrough, who Leeds face in the Championship on Saturday (2 December) due to a plethora of forward options on the books at Elland Road.
The 21-year-old has four goals in 13 Championship outings and Farke says his set-piece prowess rivals any player he has worked with, including now Tottenham and England ace James Maddison.
“He is one of the best set-piece takers I have worked with and I’ve worked with some terrific players such as James Maddison and Mario Vrancic. He has unbelievable skills. But it is not like American Football where I can substitute him on just to take a set-piece. To show those skills you have to be on the pitch,” he told a news conference in quotes reported by TeessideLive on Friday (1 December).
“If it would be allowed to do this I would have definitely kept Sam because even in our squad he would be second to none. But you have to make sure you play day in and day out as a young player. He was also a bit unlucky with his injury, but we have Summerville, James, Piroe, Rutter, Gnonto, it would be difficult for him to get game time.
“It’s important to feel that game time. In the beginning at Middlesbrough he needed five or six games to come into this rhythm. I think he has eight starts so far. He is now on the right way to play day in and day out in a really good possession side. He’s delivered some really good end products for them.”
The right decision
Teesside Live suggest Greenwood has a £1.5million purchase option in the deal that took him to Middlesbrough, which seems quite low for a player of Greenwood’s talent, albeit there is a caveat added that several scenarios need to be met.
Having been relegated from the Premier League last season, supporters and Greenwood alike might have expected him to play a prominent role for the Whites in the Championship this season.
As it was, Farke decided it would have been detrimental to the player to keep him at Elland Road and it is hard to argue it was not the right decision, with Leeds flying in the league and a forward line that is really starting to gel.
Long term, who knows what will happen? Greenwood might still have an important future at Leeds after this season, but for the here and now it definitely makes sense for him to be elsewhere and potentially boosting Leeds with some goals against their rivals.
In other Leeds United news, has Junior Firpo played his last game for the club after this latest development?