It was a decision which raised eyebrows on the terraces, and even one Daniel Farke had doubts about himself with Leeds United chasing an equaliser at home to Sunderland on Monday night.
Leeds needed goal. Preferably, two.
But rather than introduce any of his three attackers from the substitutes bench – Largie Ramazani, Mateo Joseph and Willy Gnonto – Daniel Farke made the somewhat surprising decision to bring on Joe Rothwell and Pascal Struijk instead.
The duo stepped in for Ilia Gruev and Ao Tanaka during a reshuffle, Ethan Ampadu shifting into midfield to accommodate Struijk.
By Farke’s own admission, this was not exactly the most obvious of solutions with Regis Le Bris’ well-drilled Sunderland outfit restricting the hosts to speculative efforts and a flurry of ineffective set-pieces.
Yet, with Rothwell twice crossing by Struijk to bullet home two headers – one in the 78th minute and the second in the 95th as Leeds came from behind to beat Sunderland 2-1 in the most dramatic of circumstances – any doubts Farke may have been feeling with regards to his game-management were washed away in a tidal wave of joy.
A double-change some felt was a sign of ‘madness’, maybe, but one not without method.
Daniel Farke explains why he took off Ao Tanaka in Leeds United’s Sunderland win
“It was such a difficult decision,” Farke admits, the relief palpable in his voice after the ‘excellent’ Rothwell and Struijk combined in stunning fashion. “Normally, you bring offensive players in [to a game like this].
“I brought two midfielders out and brougut a centre-back on because the feeling was we were creating set-piece after set-piece.
“So, I wanted to bring my best set-piece taker, Joe Rothwell, on the pitch. I also wanted my biggest target, Pascal Struijk.
“It was still complicated because Pascal, after a long-term injury, to bring him in as a centre-back, he has to defend all the counters. Not the easiest. I was doubting this decision for a few minutes!”
Farke pays tribute to matchwinners Joe Rothwell and Pascal Struijk
This was Struijk’s longest spell on a Championship pitch since he scored another late goal against Blackburn Rovers on New Year’s Day.
Tanaka, meanwhile, is so often the man who sets the tempo and makes Leeds tick from the centre of the park.
Farke explains that a first-half caution for the Japan international played a role in his decision, but Tanaka’s exit also owed much to his desire to keep the ever-vocal Ampadu at the heart of proceedings even if the Welshman may have been beaten by Wilson Isidor for Sunderland’s opener.
“[My plan of action] meant I also had to take Ao Tanaka off. He was on a yellow but I think he had an excellent game,” Farke adds. “But I wanted to have my captain and my skipper, in this moment, on the pitch, which was Ampadu. So, it was a difficult decision.
“But, in the end, all the compliments and the credit goes to the lads because you can have ideas as a manager and try to do something special. But it only pays off if the execution is excellent so all the praise goes to Pascal and to Joe.
“They executed the idea excellently.”
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