Daniel Farke looked and sounded like a man who had released a huge weight from his shoulders in front of the media on Wednesday night, after Leeds United beat Chelsea at Elland Road.
A stunning win for Leeds, with Farke the architect. The German’s switch to 3-5-2 at half-time against Man City was impressive enough for Farke to be convinced to use it against Chelsea on Wednesday night.
What a win! Who was your Man of the Match? 🔥
And, with good effect. Leeds produced a brilliant performance and looked threatening on the counter, dispatching a patched-up Chelsea to win 3-1. Jaka Bijol, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Ao Tanaka scored.
Going into the game, reports said Farke might have been sacked had Leeds suffered defeat. After full-time, Farke was seen contemplating on the pitch by himself, and was emotional in front of the media.
Emmanuel Petit tries to understand the pressure on Daniel Farke
The win against Chelsea has at least put the pressure to one side for a few games, with Leeds climbing out of the relegation zone at least until West Ham take on Manchester United at Old Trafford tonight.
Leeds have also returned to the point-a-game curve, with 14 points from 14 games. Speaking to Premier League Productions, Emmanuel Petit noticed Farke’s emotion and underlined how hard it must be.
“It’s very difficult to be a manager. When you win it’s because of the players, but when you lose it’s because of you. It must be so hard to deal with that kind of pressure,” Petit said about Farke’s position.
“You don’t understand what it’s like to cope with the pressure from media, fans, he’s getting very emotional but this victory will bring him happiness and he’ll sleep well tonight,” Petit continued.
What the pundits said about Leeds and Daniel Farke after the win over Chelsea 👏
Stephen Warnock: “The last game and a half could change Leeds’ season, with the new system and the belief. They look a completely different team now.”
Conor Coady: “Leeds were fantastic. You talk about bogey teams and I think they are Maresca’s bogey team, he always seems to struggle against them.”
Gary Neville: “The way in which they played tonight will see them pick up more points.There’s a lot to like about what we saw.”
Stuart Dallas: “Leeds were bang on it. The manager deserves credit, he could’ve have easily gone back to what he believes in, but he stuck with it and deserves credit.”
Leeds fans must forgive, but Paraag Marathe cannot forget
Much of the criticism aimed at Farke from fans has been that he was too reactive, his substitutions didn’t work. Well, the last two games have seen Farke being proactive, changing formation and making subs.
While Leeds fans were right to criticise, any criticism is now outdated. The Leeds manager has shown he can make a change and is willing to do so even if the German would prefer to control games with ease.
However, this cannot be forgotten by the decision makers at Elland Road. Yes, it is a brilliant win against Chelsea, but there is a long way to go and Farke has a lot still to prove as a Premier League manager.
You get the sense that Farke is learning on the job, but if he is willing to adapt as he has in the last two games, then he is the man for the job. Avoiding defeat against Liverpool will go some way to convincing.
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