"A big red flag" - Daniel Farke questioned for "alarming" Leeds United trend | OneFootball

FLW's Leeds United fan pundit believes Daniel Farke should be handed more time to turn things around.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Burnley defeated Leeds United at Elland Road on Saturday lunchtime to end the Whites' unbeaten start to the league campaign, which has caused some fans to begin questioning Daniel Farke.

Farke had to make many tough calls as manager of Leeds through the summer window, especially after the departures of Crysencio Summerville, Georginio Rutter, Archie Gray, and Glen Kamara from the first-team squad, which is sure to have had an impact on his side.

Results at the back end of the season saw Farke come under some scrutiny from certain sections of the fanbase, having failed to gain automatic promotion from a strong position. That hasn't been helped by the fact his side have got off to a rocky start this season.

They were soundly beaten by Middlesbrough in an EFL cup clash 3-0, and also failed to win either of their first two league fixtures as they drew to Portsmouth and West Bromwich Albion, albeit in vastly different circumstances.

To his credit, it was in difficult circumstances, having had to cope during the transfer period, which was a frenetic time last year and has seen key players leave this year as well. Leeds and Farke managed to navigate a tricky transfer window but ended it strong with eight new faces through the door at Elland Road.

Even with key players departing, Leeds fans will have optimism that they have the required depth and quality in their ranks to mount another promotion push by the time the window closed. But the loss to Burnley, after good wins in the two games prior, has seen skepticism and doubt grow once more.

The Leeds United view on Daniel Farke following defeat to Burnley

The latest defeat has stirred up some feelings of unrest amongst the Leeds fanbase. Farke has come under some pressure from a few sections of the Leeds contingent for the first time this season, as pressure builds on gaining promotion this term.

Football Insider reporter Pete O'Rourke has claimed that the pressure is on for the German boss to deliver that this season after his side lost out in the 2023/24 play-off final to Southampton in May. Leeds' chiefs expect to return to the Premier League for the 2025/26 season, so the pressure is on the 47-year-old to turn their fortunes around soon or he will likely face the sack.

FLW’s Leeds United fan pundit Kris Smith believes it may be too soon to speak in those terms, but is wary of the issues becoming terminal, particularly during Leeds' struggles against sides set up to frustrate them when they are ahead.

He said: "For me, the circumstances of our loss to Burnley have to be taken into consideration when thinking about criticism for Farke or the players.

"We should have been 1-0 up in the first minute when Mateo Joseph ran through, and we should have equalised through Willy Gnonto in the first half, and we also could have had a penalty as well.

"The game could easily have swung the exact opposite direction and we would not be talking about any of this.

"That said, it was yet another game where we looked devoid of any inspiration to break down a team that weren't doing anything ground breaking to retain their lead.

"They were sitting deep and limiting access for us to get in through the middle. We had no answer to it and barely tested James Trafford after that Gnonto chance.

"Farke has now had that problem for a long time with Leeds, with teams sitting deep and soaking up pressure through the middle. He doesn't look like he's really changed anything to find solutions to that,

"His substitutes were really alarming, though. At half-time, it was painfully obvious that we needed subs, but our first change came in the 68th minute.

"That is far too late and is quite a big red flag for Farke. The fact that they are too late and rarely alter the course of the game, or change results to get us wins.

"I think, overall, it would be harsh right now to say that his job is on the line. We have only lost once in the league but are seeing some of the same problems as last season.

"There's no sign for a solution to what he is doing in our set-up. In my opinion, I would only be starting to judge Farke for his job after another month.

"He's got to have time to get his new signings bedded in, but he does simply have to get promotion this season.

"A slow start will not do him any favours with the fans or the board."

Daniel Farke's Leeds United aspirations in 2024/25

He seemed to have all the right ingredients for automatic promotion last season as the Whites kept plenty of their top players, but they also started that campaign slowly, and still eventually ended up challenging Ipswich Town and Leicester City for the top two.

Despite Leeds still boasting one of the strongest squads in the second-tier this season, it is fair to say that Farke has been dealt a tougher hand this term after numerous key players were sold in the summer and not all of the money brought in was invested back into the squad.

However, the Whites are still in a strong position after they missed out on promotion, and although there are challenges Farke needs to find better answers for, Smith is right to point out that he has proven to be the right man for the role in many ways.

Leeds have started to struggle when teams compact the middle of the pitch or sit deep in a low block, and solutions can be found both tactically in players that start or come off the bench. Although, they needed to speed up the tempo of their attacks on Saturday, and instead slowed down the game with the subs losing all momentum.