Daniel Farke was in a fantastic mood during his press conference on Thursday after watching Leeds defeat Chelsea.
The German seemed far more relaxed when addressing the media ahead of Liverpool visiting Elland Road on Saturday, as a run of four straight defeats ended and simultaneously eased the pressure on his shoulders at Leeds.
Daniel Farke managed to overcome Chelsea without two key players in Sean Longstaff and Dan James – who are currently nursing calf and hamstring problems respectively.
The 49-year-old has now revealed little has changed regarding the duo, but raised slight concerns over Lukas Nmecha and Ao Tanaka as well as Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Daniel Farke says Lukas Nmecha and Ao Tanaka could miss Leeds United vs Liverpool along with Dominic Calvert-Lewin
When asked if he has any new injuries to deal with, Farke said: “We definitely have Dan James and Sean Longstaff out. After this game, we need to take some late decisions, we have a few players who are doubts.
“Lukas Nmecha had hamstring problems after last night, we have to assess him to see if he is available. Dominic Calvert-Lewin with some calf problems after last game. Question mark over his availability.”
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Daniel Farke after Leeds United v Chelsea - Premier League
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The man born in Steinhausen also raised doubts over Ao Tanaka when mentioning potential fatigue, saying: “With Ao Tanaka it’s tricky as he’s played in both games (Manchester City and Chelsea) in a position where he had to invest a lot, so hopefully at the moment he’s in the ice bath.”
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How Leeds United could line up against Liverpool
Farke would be mad to change his system after hammering Chelsea with the new 3-5-2 formation, and we highly doubt he will.
The Leeds boss does have to think about fatigue, as he mentioned when discussing Tanaka, but after such a strong display against Chelsea, we think he’ll stick with a winning formula.
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Potential Leeds United XI against Liverpool
GRV Media generated image of potential Leeds United XI against Liverpool
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This match comes at a terrible time for Arne Slot – who Leeds almost hired – as he continues to struggle at Anfield.
Liverpool have suffered nine defeats in their last 14 outings across all competitions, and came within inches of losing at home to Sunderland on Wednesday as Wilson Isidor saw a late shot cleared off the line.
Chelsea sat third heading into the clash at Elland Road and were involved in tentative title race discussions after their 1-1 draw against Arsenal on Sunday, so the fact even they struggled against the new 3-5-2 formation should give Farke plenty of encouragement as Liverpool await.
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