Daniel Farke risks Birmingham City vs Leeds United ridicule after priority admission
Daniel Farke won’t be taking any chances with his players’ fitness as Leeds United face Birmingham City in the FA Cup on Sunday.
St Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park will host the Whites in the fourth round of the competition on 15 February, and it will be interesting to see how the German manager sets up for the game.
The West Yorkshire outfit are coming off a 2-2 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League, securing a point after an impressive second-half comeback.
Pascal Struijk and Anton Stach are currently unavailable due to injury, and they aren’t expected to return for the trip to Birmingham, with the 49-year-old head coach hinting at a weakened side for the clash against Chris Davies’ team.
Leeds United may not go full-strength vs Birmingham City
Leeds fans will be hoping to see their team progress further in the FA Cup this season, especially since they face a Birmingham side sitting 10th in the Championship.
The Whites were knocked out of the competition in the fourth round by Millwall last season, but Farke seems open to risking the same outcome.
Ahead of the fixture at St Andrew’s, the German manager has openly stated that the Premier League is the West Yorkshire outfit’s priority, as it should be, but that doesn’t mean they can take their foot off the gas in other competitions.
Speaking in the pre-match press conference on 13 February, Farke said, “Of course, we want to go into the next round. There is no doubt about this. But of course, on the other hand, the league and to achieve survival has a priority.”
The German boss added that he doesn’t want to take risks with the likes of Struijk and Stach, which makes sense, but he seems ready to drop other key players from the starting lineup.
Farke is undoubtedly risking ridicule if he doesn’t pick the best team available to face the Blues, with the next Premier League fixture not until 21 February, away at Aston Villa.
Daniel Farke to give three fringe players chance at St Andrew’s
Joel Piroe will surely be hoping to finally get a start under Farke this season after falling down the pecking order at Elland Road.
The centre-forward seems to have lost the German manager’s trust, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha preferred over the Suriname international.
Lucas Perri may also return to the fold after being dropped to the bench for Karl Darlow, with Farke publicly expressing his dissatisfaction with the Brazilian goalkeeper.
Sam Byram could potentially have a role to play at St Andrew’s, and Facundo Buonanotte will also be hoping for a full Leeds debut in Birmingham.
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