Leeds United manager Daniel Farke had no intentions of walking out on the Whites amid claims he was an option for Benfica before their appointment of Jose Mourinho – and the German will be hoping to celebrate his loyalty is rewarded with a much-welcome win on Saturday.
The former Norwich boss has a near-flawless record since taking charge at Elland Road. Despite chalking up a 90-point season in his first year at the helm, that wasn’t enough to secure promotion after Leeds saw themselves topped by Leicester and Ipswich in a truly unique season.
Sticking to his task, Farke went on to rack up a 100-point season second time around, beating Burnley to the title on goal difference and, more importantly, succeeding in his mission to lead Leeds back to the promised land at the second time of asking.
While not every Leeds fan agrees with his tactics, or his stubbornness against certain players, the facts do not lie, and Farke currently boasts the best win percentage record of any manager in the club’s history.
Such has been that form, that it has now emerged that the 48-year-old was considered as an option for Benfica this week, when they decided to axe former Wolves boss Bruno Lage.
And while the Portuguese giants ultimately landed their number one target, Mourinho, a failure to bring the Special One back to the Estadio da Luz would have reportedly seen a move for Farke launched, with the Leeds boss slotted as the European giants’ Plan B.
However, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke, Farke would have chosen to stay loyal to Leeds, even if Benfica had come calling.
Speaking on the Inside Track podcast, O’Rourke explained: “No, I don’t think there was any real possibility that Daniel Farke would have walked out on Leeds despite those links with a potential move to Benfica.
“Farke is all in at Leeds right now. He’s on the contract until 2027.
“Obviously, there was a bit of rumours earlier in the summer that maybe Leeds could move on from Daniel Farke, but they’ve stuck with the German and they’ve backed him in the transfer market as well.”
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Farke needs to fix Leeds’ goal struggles before agenda shifts
While Farke’s loyalty must be applauded, he will need Leeds to find a solution in front of goal before the agenda begins to shift and he finds himself facing speculation that he could be facing the sack.
Going into Saturday’s clash at Wolves, Leeds have four points from four games, though it could and should have been five points but for a woefully unfortunate last-ditch own goal denying them a point at Fulham last time out.
However, amid Leeds’ return to the Premier League lies an underlying problem – a very clear inability to score goals. Indeed, Leeds have failed to score from open play this season, having just one Lukas Nmecha penalty to their name.
Since that opening game, the Whites have gone three straight matches without scoring, leading some supporters to question if their toothlessness in front of goal could cost them both survival and Farke his job.
There is no denying Leeds need a spark from somewhere – and they will hope it arrives on Saturday when they travel to face struggling Wolves at Molineux.
The game is already being billed as a six-pointer in the context of Leeds’ season despite it coming just five games in. Win, and they will have a seven-point buffer already on Wolves at the bottom of the table; lose and that gap is down to one and with the Whites firmly thrust into the relegation conversation.
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