Leeds United v Queens Park Rangers: The man who wants to kill people after every defeat tells Whites to keep Southampton loss in perspective – Yorkshire Post 4/10/23

Daniel Farke was in a murderous mood at the weekend but now it is all about keeping a calm head and plotting how Leeds United respond to their first defeat in seven matches.

By Stuart Rayner

The Whites were beaten 3-1 at Southampton on Saturday, the game effectively settled a fraction past the half-hour of the lunchtime kick-off when Will Smallbone's precise finish trebled his side's lead.

For all that Leeds took a while to get going under him, it was only the second time they have lost a competitive game under Farke's management, and he seems pleased how unhappy he was about it.

But a man quite content to tell the world he wanted to kill people on Sunday now wants to keep everything in perspective ahead of Wednesday's Championship visit from Queens Park Rangers.

"I will never get used to losing football games," he says. "The next day I don't want to get up, I don't want to speak about football and if anyone comes around I want to kill.

"It was the same 20 years ago and it will be the same in 20 years. Although in the weeks before we were six games unbeaten and four clean sheets, I still want to kill.

"I try to hide my emotions because nobody wants to have such an emotional killer as a manger and head coach. It will always be the same."

If it all sounds a bit alarming – not least for Farke's postman – the German insists he is "totally okay" with it, and would be more concerned if he took defeat well.

"I want my players to feel this disappointment because you need to feel that there's no replacement for the winning feeling after the game," he argues. "I also like that all our supporters and everyone in our club feels the same pain after a loss."

Eventually, though, the anger has to subside so he can pick a team to beat QPR, mindful of the fact it is Leeds' third game in seven days.

"I think it's quite important to feel this but also to analyse the game once you've slept one night and you can calm down a little bit, to stay objective and keep in mind the players aren't robots they're human beings," he says. "It's the Championship.

"We hadn't conceded one goal in the whole of September. I would have liked on the last day of September to return with a clean sheet but sometimes to accept it's football.

"We've given away four chances and they scored three goals. It was tough to accept but we were also a few per cent away from our best possible performance. Not just one player, I'd say the whole group."

When Southampton lost all their matches in a three-game week this month, Farke spoke about how little time they had on the training ground to put it right. The same applies to him between Southampton and QPR. Or does it?

"I would suggest our situation is a little different because with four losses in a row they obviously had a little bit of a problem they want to work on on the training pitch," argues Farke. "For us we were six games unbeaten, four clean sheets in a row (before Saturday).

"There was this one day when we were not at our best but we can draw a line under it pretty quickly. It's not like you have to change everything or doubt yourself too much.

"It's not a problem (for us) when there's a quick turnaround, it's more the other way around – you can't wait until you're back on the pitch to win the next point and make sure you show a good reaction.

"There's not much time so it's about analysing the game and showing scenes and talking about the details we have to improve.

"But there wasn't too much work after the last game because the players were quite self-critical."

The quick turnaround causes problems too, not least for 30-year-old full-back Sam Byram.

The defender is yet to start a midweek game in his second spell at Elland Road and only a fortnight ago Farke said: "To play at this level three games within six days is at the moment a bit too much for him."

Again, though, he feels circumstances are more favourable now.

"This turnaround is a bit easier," is his explanation. "It was three games within six days and just two days between the games (when he was dropped to the bench at Hull City).

"This time it's 24 hours more, which helps a lot, and we had an early kick-off on Saturday. I would be a bit more concerned about the next turnaround (to Saturday's game against Bristol City).”

And Leeds have Luke Ayling as an alternative to Byram, just as Joe Rodon can deputise if Liam Cooper – or Pascal Struijk, for that matter – is unable to recover in time.

"Luke has done well so far," says Farke. "He was involved in many good games, scored an important goal in our last home game and he's one of our leaders.

"When you have three games in seven days – he's not 22 any more (he is 32) – you have to take this into account.

"Luke, like all the others, has a chance to be involved. He's so important for us and the group, not just on the pitch but off the pitch."

The game, like next Saturday's, comes too soon for Willy Gnonto, Djed Spence and Junior Firpo.