Arsenal v Leeds United: Whites cannot write off chances of answering billion dollar questions — Yorkshire Post 23/8/25
By Stuart Rayner
Daniel Farke would love to one day be the Leeds United
manager who spent a billion pounds on transfers, even if he jokes he might be
well into his 60s by then. That Mikel Arteta has done so shows the scale of the
task facing his team on Saturday.
You could argue Leeds caught Everton at a good time on
Monday. Jack Grealish was not yet fully up to speed and David Moyes'
recruitment was so far behind he had to make do and mend with midfielder James
Garner at left-back. The home win was more dominant than the 1-0 scoreline
suggested.
Arsenal were not at their best either on day one, their 1-0
win at Manchester United also not telling the story of a match the Red Devils
more than played their part in.
But signing Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace just as
neighbours Tottenham Hotspur thought he was theirs was yet another morale boost
ahead of their first home game of the season.
After too long as second best – even to sides as outstanding
as Manchester City and Liverpool – they have spent big this summer to try and
put things right.
Viktor Gyokeres, Noni Madueke, Christian Norgaard and Martin
Zubimendi were not the signings of a club half-hearted about winning the title.
If Leeds thought they had gone big by taking their spending
near to the £100m mark with Thursday's signing of forward Noah Okafor, Eze's
arrival pushed Arteta's spending through the £1bn mark since he took over as
manager in 2021.
"I think you have to put the amount he spent in
context," Farke is quick to argue. "If you spend many years at one
club it's more likely you can reach these sums.
"I would be quite pleased if one day I could speak
about spending such a sum for Leeds United but that would probably mean I would
have to stay here for two decades!"
And there is spending money, and spending it well. Football
is full of clubs who have perfected the first half of the equation but not the
second.
"He has done an outstanding, impressive job," says
Farke of the Spaniard. "I remember in my time at Norwich there was the
change of management.
"He had a team who played very differently in
comparison to what they have delivered in recent years.
"I can remember my first chat with him after he took
over a difficult situation. He said, 'Daniel, at least they start to run and
work a little bit.'
"How well they have done in recent years, they dominate
so many games and at times they are unplayable.
"It's just the final step to win some trophies but you
can't underestimate the work he's done to make them that consistent at the top
level.
"The title would be the icing on the cake and it would
definitely be deserved for the hard work and the foundation he has created.
"He should be pretty proud."
And in Gyokeres, the out-and-out centre-forward pundits and
fans alike have been begging Arsenal to sign for years, Arteta's team suddenly
has an extra dimension to it.
"It's slightly different but it's been compared to the
situation when (Manchester) City signed (Erling) Haaland," notes Farke.
"Before they played quite often with a very mobile false nine.
"It's still up to him to prove his worth to the Arsenal
team. For every new club and in every new league you have to deliver before you
get all the praise but he brings another dimension to the Arsenal game and I
think he will be pretty beneficial to them.
"It will be a key part of our preparation to deal with
how he plays and his strength."
Some will be portraying Arsenal away as a "free
hit" for Leeds. But this is the Premier League and the week after they
play Newcastle United, the team with the richest owners in world football. Is
that a free hit too?
"It's never a free hit," insists Farke.
"Every game is a chance to win one or three points to reach the points
tally we need.
"If you judge it that way we would have many free hits!
"If you lose all thee games against the clubs the
outside world thinks are way better than you, you would not get enough points
to stay in the league."
Survival would be a great achievement this season, but not
enough for some.
"I love how emotional our supporters are and how
positive and crazy they are,” chuckles Farke.
"I remember our trip to Stockholm before our first
friendly (of this summer) and when we arrived outside our hotel from the coach
three or four supporters were shouting, what do you think our chances are to
not just to stay in the league but to win the title? One of them was just
asking for the Champions League!
"It's part of the job as Leeds United manager, they are
always a bit over-emotional and thinking two or three steps ahead but it's also
what you quite like so it's important to keep your feet on the ground and not
to lose the focus on what is really important.
"The reality is it will be a long and tough battle to
win the amount of points (we need) to stay in this league."