Very few Leeds fans could have foreseen this stunning goalscoring run from Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
The man born in Sheffield was not exactly a signing many Leeds supporters wanted the 49ers to make during the summer, even on a free transfer.
A disastrous debut in the Carabao Cup defeat against Sheffield Wednesday did little to convince Leeds fans otherwise, but one man who stuck with Dominic Calvert-Lewin was Daniel Farke, and the German is now reaping the rewards for putting his faith in the 28-year-old.
Daniel Farke backed Dominic Calvert-Lewin to shine for Leeds United when fit and his words have come true
After Calvert-Lewin missed several glorious opportunities and his penalty in the shootout as Leeds lost at Hillsborough in August, Farke leapt to his defence, citing a lack of fitness as the only reason for this wastefulness.
Answer this: Leeds United will finish in ___th place if Dominic Calvert-Lewin stays fit 📊
Six goals in five for the big man!
The Leeds boss said: “Three chances he had during the game and two at least he scores (if fit) – but I’m happy he has the shots, that he has movement, that he shows this instinct again.
“For him, it’s a little bit like a pre-season. I’m happy that he has the chance and I know that a top fit, 100% Calvert-Lewin uses this chance, but he needs desperately the minutes today to build up his fitness.”
After getting ten Premier League appearances under his belt and a bit of rhythm, Calvert-Lewin is now taking his chances emphatically.
The last five Premier League games have seen the Yorkshireman net six goals, pouncing on the type of opportunities which passed him by against Sheffield Wednesday.
With immense pressure on his own shoulders just a matter of weeks ago, Farke deserves a pat on the back for sticking with Calvert-Lewin, when it would have been very easy to take him out of the spotlight as he struggled.
Daniel Farke looks to have learned from difficult spells at Norwich
It was only a few weeks ago that Leeds fans wanted Farke to be sacked amid a run of four consecutive defeats.
However, a tactical tweak with the implementation of a 3-5-2 formation, and the continued backing of Calvert-Lewin, has now put Leeds six points clear of the bottom three with two wins and two draws from the last four matches.
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Farke previously took Norwich down in the 2019/20 campaign, finishing bottom on 21 points, before he was sacked just 11 games into his next spell in the Premier League with the Canaries in the 2021/22 season.
However, it looks to be third time lucky for the 49-year-old, who is now showing signs that he learned from those tough experiences.
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