‘We couldn’t afford it’ – Leeds United issue tackled by Cooper and Dallas in a critical week

Leadership will come from the top at Leeds United this week as they prepare for their biggest game of the season so far. The lack of experience in the Whites’ ranks means Daniel Farkew must lead from the front and set the tone in a few days that must hit the reset on a poor end to the season.

The manager admits that Stuart Dallas and Liam Cooper have continued to step in where they can as experienced heads in the dressing room, but their absence from games hurts their influence, according to Farke. While seven of Norwich City’s most used 11 players are aged 28 or over, Leeds only have two of their most capped 11.

“(Leadership comes) from the manager,” he said. “That’s what I have to do throughout the season because I know I have a lot of players in key roles who are in their first season in the Championship.

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“We don’t have 30-year-old leaders with 400 games at Championship level with four or five promotions under their belts. It’s a part where I have to do even more driving.

“They also take our more experienced players a bit more. Stuart Dallas is fantastic, although he can’t help himself (playing) on ​​the training ground, in the dressing room, but he’s there on the training ground (on the touchline).

“Liam Cooper, who has to wait for his appearances, is also doing a fantastic job, but it’s always a bit more difficult when you don’t have a lot of experienced leaders in the group playing. This is the group that we are, we know that, we know that we lack maybe a little bit of experience, we’re not the final finished product.”

Farke sees the potential of this squad, many of whom will play comfortably in the Premier League as they mature, as his big asset. It makes no sense, he sees, to insist on inexperience or to feel sorry for themselves.

“It’s not a perfectly balanced group because of the reasons we talked about,” he said. “We had to allow some experienced players to leave in the summer because of the contract situation.

“We couldn’t afford to buy experience. We wanted to use our potential and the good thing about this group is that we have a lot of potential, we have a lot of individual quality and players who will develop to play, one day, not just at the top level of the Championship but on a real level. good level in Premier League.

“This is the great advantage of this group. There is so much potential and ability. Yes, in the crisis period, there is not much experience, there is not much natural leadership, you are perfect, but at this moment it is also (important) not to stop and feel sorry for it.

“It’s even more my job to lift everyone up and lead by example. That’s what I’m trying to do.”