Paraag Marathe was in attendance at Elland Road on Wednesday night, and it is easy to imagine why the Leeds United chairman might have decided to show his face.
Daniel Farke’s future was hanging in the balance. A fifth consecutive defeat may have seen Farke lose his job, with pre-match reports suggesting Farke would have been given the axe had Leeds suffered defeat.
What the pundits said about Leeds and Daniel Farke after the win over Chelsea 👏
Looks like Farke is staying put – for now.
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.”
Photo by Ed Sykes/Getty Images
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But that wasn’t in the script. Leeds produced a sparkling performance to win 3-1 against Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea, thanks to goals from Jaka Bijol, Ao Tanaka and Dominic Calvert-Lewin on Wednesday night.
Farke was required to get a result against either Chelsea or Liverpool, and unless he receives the same treatment he got at Norwich following a win in his final game, the German is set to remain in the dugout.
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty ImagesMichael Owen discusses ‘rumours’ about Daniel Farke’s position
It is unclear if Farke will remain in the Leeds hot seat but at least for now, he has added some credit to the bank. He has given himself time and will certainly remain in charge for Saturday’s clash against Liverpool.
Speaking on Premier League productions, Michael Owen discussed the “rumours” that Farke could lose his job. He is confident Farke will remain Leeds manager and could even get a result against Liverpool.
“There were rumours before today that his job might be under a bit of pressure. If they had lost today, who knows, I’m not sure. But after that result, all of a sudden, things are looking up,” Owen claimed.
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“With the way Liverpool are playing, they could get points against Liverpool. If the season finished today, he’d be an absolute hero. It’s a strange old world management, that’s why we’re sat here,” he added.
Leeds United’s player ratings in win against Chelsea 🥳
We gave Lukas Nmecha and two others a rating of 9/10 – do you agree? Comment below!
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What Daniel Farke needs to keep himself in the Leeds dugout
It is simple for Farke, and even the Leeds gaffer has made it clear. He needs to keep Leeds out of the relegation zone, and 17th next May will be job done. To do that, Farke needs to win a point a game.
The win over Chelsea has returned Leeds to the curve line. A total of 14 points from 14 games so far. Four wins, two draws, eight defeats. If Farke can maintain that, then the German can be confident of his job.
That means, Farke is not out of the woods yet. Defeat to Liverpool on the weekend will see momentum subside, and the pressure is right back on the Leeds gaffer. But, Liverpool are not at their brilliant best.
Arne Slot has watched his Liverpool side lose nine of their last 14 games in all competitions, winning only four and failing to beat Sunderland on Wednesday. Plenty of work still to be done for Farke and Leeds.
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