Daniel Farke has spoken ahead of Leeds United’s return to Championship action against Sheffield United.
Leeds are set to host the only remaining unbeaten side in the EFL at Elland Road looking to return to winning ways after back-to-back draws at Norwich City and Sunderland.
The Whites have had a two-week international break to stew on what happened last time out at the Stadium of Light, when Illan Meslier’s 97th minute howler cost Leeds a huge win.
However, the break did arguably come at a good time for Leeds as the squad was ravaged by injuries, with Manor Solomon and Dan James now available again after injury.
Meslier has also had a much-needed period out of the spotlight, meaning he should enter this match with his error very much at the back of his mind.
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Farke shares disappointment at Leeds vs Sheffield United
Although Farke has given some time off to Leeds’ non-internationals, preparation for this one has been far from ideal.
Leeds once again had the most number of players away with their respective countries over the break, which means Farke has only had ’14-15′ in training this week.
Brenden Aaronson, Junior Firpo and Ao Tanaka are among those to have been in action over the last day-and-a-half, and due to their long flights, will be going into this one without any proper training.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Farke says he cannot get his head around why Leeds’ clash with the Blades has been scheduled for Friday night.
He believes the game had the potential to be one of the best of the season if his players were handed the appropriate period of recovery time.
He said: “It’s always tricky during the international break for a team with so many players away. I also spoke about my attitude, I’m struggling to understand the fixture list to play on Friday night after the international break.
“We have players who arrive late today. We’ll have them late back today. Once we play on Saturday you have at least one training session with the team. It’s only possible for some players to have a recovery session tomorrow.
“It is a bit disappointing and sad because it’s a great game. Normally both teams want to be at their best, Friday evening is a bit disappointing, we know about the schedule list and for that no complaints. Tricky without team training to prepare but we want to find good solutions.”
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How Farke can name a fresh Leeds XI
Leeds’ last game after the international break came on a Saturday lunchtime at home to Burnley. Though slightly more preparation time, the scheduling was still not ideal.
Eight of Farke’s starting XI that day had been away with their respective countries in the two weeks prior, with Meslier, Pascal Struijk and Jayden Bogle the exceptions.
However, Farke can avoid a repeat of that this time around. Joel Piroe, Joe Rothwell, Struijk, Bogle and Meslier are all likely to be in the line-up, and there could be more.
Solomon and James are both now back fit and have been in training for the last week, meaning they should be ready to start.
Mateo Joseph did not feature at all for Spain U21s on Tuesday, while Wilfried Gnonto only played one match too.
Though clearly the likes of Firpo, Tanaka and Aaronson are at a disadvantage, there are ways Farke can name a team that will be as fresh as possible.
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