Leeds United: Daniel Farke shares what ‘special’ Patrick Bamford must do to improve
Daniel Farke shared that Patrick Bamford could be more “focused” but defended the striker against criticism in the aftermath of Leeds United versus Coventry City.
The Whites fell to a first Championship defeat of the calendar year against Mark Robins’ side on Saturday (6 April), with Farke’s side slipping to a 2-1 loss on their travels.
Joel Piroe was on the scoresheet (6 April) but fellow forward Bamford drew criticism from certain sections of the support for his performance.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday (8 April), in quotes reported by Leeds Live, Farke explained how Bamford can improve, while talking up his qualities.
He said: “He knows, as a striker, you are either top-class or poor and the reason we don’t score. You’re either in the spotlight positively or negatively. We don’t even need to speak about it. After a tough period, do not underestimate what he is giving to the team. Patrick is a special player. We do not need to change it. I learnt this about him. I wanted to see more in training from him.
“We had to learn it’s more like Patrick’s natural appearance. He’s a tall guy, with his movement, if he scores a goal he looks naturally self-confident. He’s an elegant player. Top class. He scored a worldie at Peterborough. Patrick covered more distance than any offensive player on the pitch on Saturday. Most sprints too. It doesn’t look this because he’s tall and skinny. Do not take anything away from him. He could be more focused, but do not underestimate what he is doing for us when he is not scoring.”
How has Patrick Bamford performed for Leeds United this season?
Farke has plenty of attacking talent at his disposal which has seen his side score 76 goals in the Championship this season, the third most [FotMob].
With Piroe signing in the summer to join Joe Gelhardt, Georginio Rutter and Bamford there are plenty of options for the central striker option.
This has seen the former England international start 13 games while coming off the bench in an additional 17. He has scored seven and assisted one in that time according to FotMob.
Although he hasn’t played much at Elland Road this campaign, he has still registered his best goal return since the 2020/21 season.
The Leeds forward have been sharing the goals among themselves this season with Piroe netting 12, while Rutter has assisted 15.
Crysencio Summerville is the current top scorer with 17 and he also has an additional eight assists bringing his total goal involvements up to 25 [FotMob].
Bamford has certainly had a positive impact on the side this campaign but may have hoped for more goal involvements from his Championship outings.
In other Leeds United news, a journalist has shared why a couple of first-team regulars exchanged words in the loss to Coventry City.
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