Daniel Farke's state of Leeds United promotion address, player backing and Jurgen Klopp message — YEP 20/4/24

Daniel Farke has backed his out-of-sorts Leeds United side and echoed one of Jurgen Klopp's famous rallying cries ahead of the final three Championship games.

By Graham Smyth

The Whites, currently third, face trips to Middlesbrough and Queens Park Rangers next week, before what they hope will be the season finale at home to fourth-placed Southampton. The Saints, on a three-game winning run, can be considered the form team in the top four, given that leaders Ipswich Town are, like Leeds, winless in three and Leicester City have lost their last two. Leeds' defeats to Coventry City and Blackburn Rovers sandwiched a 0-0 draw with Sunderland and that sequence brought to a juddering halt their three-month streak that reeled in the top two.

Casting his eye over the automatic promotion contenders, Farke believes Leeds' fanbase marks them out as special and above the others, but beyond that he does not consider the favourites tag appropriate for his club.

"We have one department where we are definitely one of the best sides in this league, if not the best side," he said. "This is our supporters. The supporters of this club are second to none. They are right up there with the best in this country, if not the best. But just because we have the skill, it’s not we are a big favourite. When I compare our last 20 years as a club -  I love this club already and I am ambitious, I told you what I want for this club in the mid and the long term - but when I compare how many years we spent in the Premier League in the last 20 years and to compare this with the likes of Leicester, Southampton, you won’t label us as the big favourite if I’m honest."

Farke also believes his team's relative youthfulness precludes them from being talked up as favourites, but he wants fans to give them all the support they can muster for the final three games and used a line first uttered by Klopp in his first ever Liverpool press conference to rally that support in a lengthy plea. At such a pivotal time of the season, this can perhaps best be described as his state of the United address.

"When you have a look on the average age on the starting line-up, you won’t label us as a big favourite," he said. "We have fantastic players and I tell you what, I don't want to swap one player, I totally believe in this group and I totally trust this players but because we are not the finished product, I can't guarantee that we are always there with a perfect outcome. I don't want to copy anyone but I think it was Jurgen Klopp once he joined Liverpool he said once, we have to start this process to become believers, not doubters. And this is more or less like what I would like to invite everyone who is connected with Leeds United. These lads have done so fantastic, and also this club, the key people in this club has done so fantastic to come from really difficult situation 10 months ago and to this position right now. We have an exciting young team with lots of potential and we are on the right path and we're developing so much into the right direction. These lads deserve so much backing and so much trust and I would like to remind everyone to be a believer, to believe that we can do it, that we can make out of our season a perfect season, either by using the first ballot by climbing up the table to the top two, if not then by the second ballot to play a perfect season to go into the play-offs. I would rather finish the season in the beginning of May if I’m really honest, of course I was also looking forward to plan a bit earlier, to have a bit more relaxed summer but if not, then we also go for the play-offs. But right now we're just focused on the last three games, come on be a believer. Believe that we can do this and we go for it and if you choose to stay a doubter and moan a bit and then be pessimistic and whatever, don't worry, we go for it anyway. So not a problem. But believe me it feels much better if you're a believer."

The mood around the club has undoubtedly been dampened by the last three results and where much of the doubt has arisen for fans is in the way Leeds failed to take their chances against Coventry, Sunderland and Blackburn, whose Elland Road victory was a source of huge frustration in the stands and in the post-game discourse. Farke, though, says it was not difficult to put together a convincing argument for his players to pick their heads up.

"I just have to point to the statistics and show the more or less scenes from the last game," he said. "We dominated this game with 75 to 25 per cent possession. We dominated this game with 19 to three shots. We dominated this game with 12 to one corners. We dominate this game in terms of Expected Goals. I could go on with all the statistics, they don't matter. The only one that matters are goals but it tells you, if you play the same game 30 times you will win it 28 times, there's one game when you draw it, and one game when you lose it. And it was just one of those days, it’s football, we all know this. And it's of course a bit unlucky that it’s the second to last home game that this happens."

Following an incredible run of results with a trio of disappointing ones at this stage of the season is obviously so far from ideal, yet Farke insists nothing has changed in terms of their approach to the promotion race. Where once they were 17 points back from Leicester they are now a single point behind, albeit having played a game more. But they're still behind, still in pursuit, so he says their mentality will not change for the final three outings, starting at Middlesbrough on Monday night. "So the whole season, we were in the chasing role, and the only thing that has happened is we're edging closer," he said. "Obviously, to be fully honest, yes with a better outcome out of last week, it could have been that we would be the first time leading from the front. Yes we know this would have appreciated this but if I'm honest, after this week, for us, nothing has changed. We're still in the chasing role. So it's not like we give anything away. If you're always just in the chasing role, you just can win, and this is what we want to do right now."