With the Premier League season just around the corner, Leeds United’s final pre-season friendly against AC Milan is a crucial opportunity for Daniel Farke to iron out the remaining kinks.
All eyes will be on new signing Sean Longstaff, whose pre-season performances have been a cause for concern among fans.
Daniel Farke will also be hoping for good news on the fitness of goalkeeper Lucas Perri, who has been recovering from a niggle since his arrival and has yet to get minutes in a match.
Finally, the friendly offers a chance to see how Farke plans to utilise his attacking options.
The partnership between Joel Piroe and Lukas Nmecha will be a key tactical talking point, with fans eager to see how the two strikers can be deployed to lead the line.
Sean Longstaff playing for Leeds.
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Sean Longstaff’s form and will goalkeeper Lucas Perri start?
Despite Sean Longstaff’s Premier League experience, the Leeds faithful have been less than impressed following the Villarreal game.
Sean Longstaff struggled during the 45 minutes he played in his first game of any description at Elland Road, even if it was not yet his competitive debut.
Longstaff also plays cricket in the off-season but getting up to speed is taking him longer than his teammates and the other new signings. Longstaff struggled against Man United in the first game, too.
MORE LEEDS UNITED STORIES
This game v AC Milan is arguably Longstaff’s last chance to impress before the league starts, and he won’t want to make a bad impression, given how unforgiving the Premier League can be.
Leeds United fans will be keen to see Lucas Perri’s secret weapon, and it would be great to see him get some game time on Saturday.
Despite this, Karl Darlow started v Villarreal due to Perri arriving in Yorkshire with a minor injury, as detailed by Graham Smyth of The Yorkshire Evening Post.
But you never know, Farke could decide he is fit enough to play the second half to give him some minutes ahead of the Premier League opener v Everton.
Lukas Nmecha playing for Leeds.
Photo by Linnea Rheborg/Getty Images
How Joel Piroe and Lukas Nmecha could play alongside each other
The Manchester United friendly, where Joel Piroe and Lukas Nmecha played separate halves, only heightened the curiosity of how the two could operate together.
With Daniel Farke’s tactical flexibility, a partnership could be formed where Nmecha acts as a modern-day Patrick Bamford.
Like Bamford at his best, Nmecha’s high work rate, physicality, and intelligent pressing could lead the line, creating space and putting pressure on AC Milan’s defence.
Piroe, with his clinical finishing and ability to drop deep, could thrive just behind him as a number 10, exploiting the space Nmecha creates.
This tactical alignment would give Leeds a dynamic duo, combining Nmecha’s power and directness with Piroe’s creativity and goal-scoring threat.