Leeds United boss Daniel Farke could unleash an as-yet unseen combination if one of his key leaders passes fit to start against Fulham.
The summer transfer window allowed Leeds to significantly beef up Farke's midfield options with the arrival of 6ft 5ins Anton Stach and Premier League veteran Sean Longstaff. What Longstaff lacks in size next to his fellow new boy he more than makes up for in willingness to do the dirty work, as evidenced with his performance against former employers Newcastle United. Longstaff's physicality rattled a supremely gifted Magpies midfield and put Leeds on the front foot with possession won in promising areas. So far he leads the Whites in tackling - sitting ninth in the Premier League for possession won in the final third and ninth for successful challenges. Stach counts defensive work among his strengths and across his career has shown himself to be particularly adept at reading the game to intercept passes but there's a creative side to his game as well. Only one player in the English top flight has created more chances than Leeds' German midfielder this season.
Stach and Longstaff joined a midfield picture that already boasted serious physicality in the form of club captain Ethan Ampadu. But Ilia Gruev and Ao Tanaka also demonstrated they could do 'the other side' of the game in the Championship, with the latter also bringing more quality on the ball than the former.
As a group of five they give Farke some decisions to make and some flexibility in terms of what he wants to do in the Premier League. At least they did, until both Ampadu and Tanaka picked up MCL injuries and sat out the Newcastle game, meaning the midfield practically picked itself. It will have reassured Farke no end that the trio he was left with put in such a solid collective display and matched a Champions League outfit.
So far Farke has started four different combinations in the midfield. On the season's opening day he had his enforcer Ampadu alongside Stach and Tanaka as the number 8s. It was perhaps the most forward-thinking version of the Leeds United midfield. They were dominant enough in a deserved 1-0 win. At Arsenal, without Ampadu, Farke again left Longstaff on the bench and this time started Gruev, Stach and Tanaka. The 5-0 defeat led to suggestions that he should have gone with more physicality through the spine of the team including in the middle. The Carabao Cup game at Sheffield Wednesday allowed Farke to return to the 4-2-3-1 formation he favoured so heavily in the Championship and Longstaff got his start, next to Gruev. Neither were able to shine in a game ultimately lost on penalties. Last time out, against Newcastle, it was Gruev slightly behind Longstaff and Stach because that was really all Farke was left with. It worked out, though.
In the aftermath of the beating sustained at The Emirates, Farke was adamant his team decision was one he would make again if given the chance of a re-run. Though he later clarified that there were a couple of selection calls he couldn't make due to slight niggles or match sharpness, his overall feeling was that a team that had shown a 'winning formula' against Everton was not something to rush away from. And that may well be his feeling again when Leeds go to Fulham on Saturday because, after all, Ampadu and Tanaka are only just back in team training and late decisions were to be made on their availability before the trip to London.
But Farke has shown and expressed his unwavering loyalty to Ampadu in the middle of the park over more than two seasons. The Welsh international is Farke's captain and was named the 'most important player' by the manager on more than one occasion during his absence from a 2024/25 knee injury. Ampadu's powers of recovery have also been noted and he was slightly ahead of Tanaka this week when it came to their rehabilitation from similar injuries. We know that Ampadu will push himself forward to play and if he can prove his fitness then Farke will play him.
Who joins the captain in the middle is the more interesting bit. As harsh as it would be on Gruev, he is the most natural man to drop out because he and Ampadu play the same position. The Bulgarian did fine against the Magpies but there is no doubt that he will be Ampadu's understudy when everyone is fit and firing. And that leaves the number 8 slots to deliberate over. Tanaka likely won't come straight back in if he's behind Ampadu in terms of his recovery, but when he is fully fit? The Japan international brings quality on the ball and is arguably the classiest operator of the lot, yet there were a small number of occasions when he got run over physically in the Championship. The Premier League boasts the biggest, strongest athletes and there will be occasions when Stach's size and Longstaff's legs are the ideal accompaniment to Ampadu's physicality - away games, for example, when Leeds look to be compact and nasty to play against.
So should Ampadu pass the fitness test and put himself in a position to start the game, Farke could for the very first time unleash his most horrible midfield trio. As a three they will look to smash into teams who show the least bit of hesitation on the ball. They will be able to match the runs of opposition midfields. And given what Fulham did to Chelsea in transition with that beautiful goal that was so wrongly disallowed, when there were two opportunities for Chelsea players to go in and win the ball, Farke might relish the chance to give Leeds a protective ring of steel in the middle of the park. Even if Ampadu doesn't make it for the Craven Cottage game, at least Farke can once again look forward to having options and the luxury of a decision or two to make.
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