Leeds United new look, telltale signs and what was missing v Man Utd — Graham Smyth's Verdict — YEP 19/7/25
By Graham Smyth
YEP chief football writer Graham Smyth was in Stockholm for
the first glimpse of a new-look Leeds United as they drew 0-0 with Manchester
United
Leeds United showed a little of what they have and a little
of what they still need in a 0-0 pre-season opener against Manchester United in
Sweden.
Strawberry Arena in Stockholm was a sea of red apart from a
small block of white from which all the noise came for 90 minutes of very
pre-season football. Those travelling from West Yorkshire or parts of
Scandinavia to give the Whites their backing will have been tentatively
encouraged by what they saw, however in two very different halves. The first
saw Leeds hold a better grip on the ball and the tempo, albeit without
troubling the more established Premier League outfit. The second saw them on
the back foot for longer yet they held more of a goal threat on the counter.
The most important boxes to tick for Daniel Farke were
minutes in legs, the bedding in of new faces and the development of
relationships across the pitch. And having appeared to come through the
friendly without injury, he could be happy enough.
Farke’s new-look system
It took 10 minutes for Manchester United to put together a
sustained period of possession. Leeds saw most of the ball in the opening
minutes and showed more attacking intent. Though it was a different look to
last season's tactical set-up, thanks to a 4-3-3 formation, there were still
telltale signs of Daniel Farke's principles, like Jayden Bogle staying high and
wide to race off into space on the right to deliver a dangerous cross or like
the four bodies strung out across the front line as another attack was built.
In midfield, with Anton Stach's arrival moving towards the
imminent stage, Ilia Gruev had the look of a man keen to prove a point. He
nipped in a number of times to disrupt Manchester United possession. But he was
far from alone in seeking to make contact with opposition bodies. Leeds were
physical with an edge and an urgency when they didn't have the ball, though
they continued to see plenty of it.
Chances for either side were few and far between yet there
was plenty for the wildly outnumbered Leeds fans to enjoy. Bogle's tricky
footwork allowed him to beat players and find space, Ao Tanaka and Willy Gnonto
linked up beautifully at times and Lukas Nmecha looked sharp in his hold-up
play. If the number 9's physicality and mobility held hints as to the future
for Patrick Bamford, the latter's complete exclusion from the trip was big,
bold writing on the wall.
Towards the end of the half Manchester United began to exert
some dominance and Karl Darlow had to be sharp to palm out a cross, before
another deflected over his head and against the crossbar, but the half ended
goalless. Leeds could be happy enough with the measure of control and stability
they enjoyed, but what was missing was obviously at the top end of the pitch in
creativity. Whether Jack Harrison becomes an answer of any kind for Leeds
remains to be seen - the fans in Stockholm made it clear where they stood with
their boos and chants - but against Manchester United he was not.
Leeds v Man Utd second half
With eight changes at the break for Leeds and 11 for their
opponents, the second half was always going to be a completely different game
to the first. The story of this one, initially at least, was Leeds having to
spend more time out of possession and then looking to counter with the pace of
Dan James and Largie Ramazani. But where the more in-control first half side
struggled to create, the second half team were far more dangerous on the
counter.
Bogle, one of the three who stayed on beyond the break,
played a pair of one-twos with Joel Piroe to steal in on the right and test Tom
Heaton in goal. Gabriel Gudmundsson's corner was flicked on by Gruev and Tanaka
made a mess of his attempted shot at the back stick. Then Piroe, who twice
failed to play in James, succeeded in putting Ramazani away only for Heaton to
come out on top again.
In a similar vein to the first half, Manchester United came
on strong towards the end of the 45. Patrick Dorgu went down in the box under a
heavy challenge from substitute Sam Chambers, the Leeds youngster seemed to
stop and look pleadingly at the referee as the Man Utd man got up to force
Illan Meslier into a smart save at his near post. The Frenchman scrambled to
make a save of pure instinct on his line during a late scramble that saw the
ball come off the crossbar, and Leeds survived to see out a goalless draw.
The Whites now move their entire senior operation to Germany
for a week-long training camp and two behind-closed-doors friendlies. It is
expected that Stach will join them once a deal is completed, giving Farke yet
another option in the middle of the park. A 6ft 4ins destroyer, the German
brings something different to what is already in place in what is now a
well-rounded midfield. The missing pieces of the starting XI puzzle - a
striker, a left winger and a goalkeeper - need to follow. The quality of the players
they get for those vacancies will be instructive as to how this season might go
because they are key roles.
In Igor Paixão, Rodrigo Muniz and Lucas Perri they have
targets who would put the gloss on the summer recruitment piece. Whether it's
all three or none, the players who complete the picture need to bring serious
quality. There is hard work still to be done. But there is a quiet confidence
around Elland Road that they're off to a solid start both on and off the pitch.