No need for 'panic' insists Leeds United boss Daniel Farke plus Coventry City scorer Bobby Thomas on late rumpus with Crysencio Summerville — Yorkshire Post 18/12/23
A WELL-REASONED manager and proven Championship operator, Daniel Farke insists now is not the time to panic for Leeds United, despite a couple of setbacks.
By Leon Wobschall
On a day when promotion rivals Ipswich Town dropped two
points at home to Farke’s former club Norwich City, third-placed Leeds could
not make inroads into their lead after drawing themselves on home soil in a 1-1
draw with Coventry City.
The gap between Leeds and Ipswich, in second, remains at ten
points ahead of their key meeting at Elland Road on Saturday.
Leaders Leicester City can move three points clear at the
summit tonight if they beat Midlands rivals Birmingham City at St Andrew’s.
Leeds, beaten at Sunderland last Tuesday, looked on course
for an eighth successive home league win after Crysencio Summerville put them
in front after 58 minutes against a stubborn Coventry side on Saturday.
But the visitors soon levelled through ex-Barnsley loanee
Bobby Thomas and despite strong late pressure, United could not net a precious
winner.
Despite collecting just a solitary point from the last six
available, Farke remains calm.
The German, whose side have lost just once in their last
nine matches, winning six, said: “Before the game, we had (played) 21 games and
had so many points already and I think we were even better than Burnley last
season and everyone was praising them as the best Championship team ever.
"We are in a really good position. Yes, after seven
wins in a row at home, there is sometimes a day when you are not clinical in
terms of finishing and you have to live with it. We are still unbeaten and have
a fortress here and I like this a lot.
“We don’t have to panic and oversize or over-play this
situation. It’s the Championship, I’ve had losses and setbacks before and I
know what it means.
"Sometimes, you have weeks like this. The last week was
a bit unlucky and disappointing, but this is what you have to accept.”
Saturday was a day when Leeds spurned several chances,
particularly in the second half.
Farke stressed after Saturday’s game that he wanted his
players to feel the pain of that disappointment for a few days.
On their return to training, the focus will be on finding
that ‘last two or three per cent’ on training in a bid to sharpen his players
up in front of goal, the German said.
He commented: "It is always good to find balance and
not to lose self-confidence in terms of finishing because we have scored many,
many goals and fantastic goals.
"Some team goals were a bit like ‘goals of the season’,
so it’s about reminding them of those situations and how well they have gone in
terms of end product all season.
"But it’s also that last two or three per cent and
greediness to score. This is definitely a topic for training, yes.”
Despite dropping points, United’s unbeaten record at home
this season still remains intact, a fact that midfielder Glen Kamara was keen
to point out.
He said: "We’re unbeaten at home, so just want to carry
that on.
"I feel we’re going to approach it (Ipswich) like every
other game.
"There’s no easy games in this league. We’ve got to be
hungry and ready.
"They are above us in the league and we want to go out
there and get three points, especially at home."
A brief commotion followed the final whistle on Saturday,
involving both sets of players with home scorer Summerville being among the
central figures.
Speaking about the rumpus, Coventry scorer Thomas claimed:
“It was Summerville. I went to shake his hand and he palmed it off, so you
thought there was no respect there.
