Leeds United manager Daniel Farke has explained why he elected to drop Dominic Calvert-Lewin to the bench for his side’s stalemate against Liverpool.
The decision to omit Dominic Calvert-Lewin from his starting line-up was one of four changes made by the Leeds manager as his side travelled to Anfield.
However, Daniel Farke was vindicated as his side produced a battling performance to take a valuable away point against Liverpool.
Calvert-Lewin almost had the final say in the game as he came off the bench to score what appeared to be a late Leeds winner, before VAR ruled the goal out for offside.
Now, Farke has explained why he was forced to drop his star to the bench as Leeds extended their unbeaten Premier League run to six games.
Did Daniel Farke get his team selection right for the trip to Anfield? 🤔
Leeds were solid in defence, but rarely threatened in the 0-0 draw
Daniel Farke explains decision not to start Dominic Calvert-Lewin v Liverpool
Speaking to BBC Match of the Day after the draw against the Reds, Farke explained why the prolific Calvert-Lewin started the game from the bench at Anfield.
Calvert-Lewin has endured a difficult run of injuries in recent years and, according to Farke, he did not want to risk pushing his star man too far with a difficult run of games on the horizon.
The Leeds boss said: “Sometimes the head has to win over the heart. We had four Premier League fixtures in 10 days, and I have to trust my whole squad.
“We know what happened to Dominic in the last few years with injuries. Overall, it was a sign of how much I trust the group.”
On the challenge of facing Manchester United on Sunday (January 4th), Farke added: “It will be tricky because we played late today and now we play early on Sunday.
“We will be without Ethan Ampadu after his yellow card today, but we need to find solutions. We need to recover quickly.”
Nigel Martyn calls for Dominic Calvert-Lewin to make immediate return
While Farke was ultimately justified in his decision to rest Calvert-Lewin at Anfield, as Leeds secured another valuable away point, club legend Nigel Martyn wants the striker to make an immediate return to the starting line-up.
According to Martyn, speaking on LUTV, the partnership between Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha looked dangerous when used in previous games, and Farke should reunite the pairing for the visit of the Red Devils.
How costly will Ethan Ampadu’s absence be against Man U?
Daniel Farke was not happy with the decision to book the Leeds captain, which ruled him out of the game 😠
Martyn said: “I wouldn’t be surprised to see him and Nemecha starting because they did really well in the Chelsea game at home. So, I’d like to see those two probably start again in that Manchester United game.
“He’s rested up. He’s still travelled, he’s still had to prepare, he’s still done everything, but his legs won’t be feeling quite as bad as they would have been had he played the full 90 minutes.”
Receive a digest of our best Leeds content each week direct to your mailbox
