‘He is capable’… Daniel Farke says 20-year-old Leeds player is now close to being able to play more minutes

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Daniel Farke could be tempted to make changes to his Leeds United starting XI against Sheffield Wednesday on Friday.

The Whites are set to play the last of four matches in nine days before a period of nine days without a game and it is fair to say it has been a challenging period for Farke’s squad.

Farke has been less than impressed with the scheduling of Leeds’ matches in recent weeks and opted to make three changes to his side for Tuesday’s win over Stoke City, and there could be more to come at Hillsborough.

One player who is really pushing for a start is Mateo Joseph, after an impressive cameo off the bench last night, building on his two-goal performance at Chelsea last week.

In his pre-Sheffield Wednesday press conference today, Farke was asked about close Joseph could potentially be to a start, and hinted it may not be too far away if he continues playing like this.

Farke hints at Joseph starts soon

He said: “We are happy with this development, after a long-term injury at the beginning of the season. I was excited about him in pre-season, and his development, that’s why we rewarded him with a new contract.

“Obviously it’s never that easy when you are there without a goal at Championship level to say you are the go-to guy during the run-in. We have a lot of competition in this position.

“Mateo has shown what he is capable of. If he keeps going like this, his chances for minutes will increase week to week and who knows he can have a big influence and impact in the last games.

“I don’t want to put too much pressure on his shoulders. It’s also important to calm him down and make sure he’s not over the line.”

Leeds were forced to soak up some pressure against Stoke but the introduction of Joseph, Willy Gnonto and Joel Piroe helped turn the game back in their favour.

Joseph was hugely unlucky not to net his first ever league goal for Leeds last night after his brace at Chelsea, as he saw an effort cleared off the line by Ben Wilmot.

Patrick Bamford has had injury issues this season and it could potentially be a risk handing him a third start in just six days. Joseph should be next in line if Bamford isn’t quite ready.