Daniel Farke pulled no punches in his post-match press conference after Leeds United’s late defeat to Fulham, but made it clear he was proud of the performance his players had put in.
Arguably, the better side for 75 minutes, new record signing Kevin swung the tide in Fulham’s favour. The 94th-minute winner was nothing but a fluke however, as Gabriel Gudmundsson headed into his own net.
Gudmundsson looked distraught as he apologised to fans and there have even been some murmurs that he was in tears in the dressing room afterwards. Farke admitted Leeds considered Kevin in the summer.
But there were plenty of positives. After the hurt evaporates, given how close Leeds came to winning a point, fans will start to understand how good a display it was, especially given Leeds’ London record.
Photo by Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty ImagesDaniel Farke heaps praise on Brenden Aaronson after match
One surprise Farke did make when selecting the starting XI was the inclusion of Brenden Aaronson over Willy Gnonto. Aaronson is not fancied among Leeds fans, and yet, Farke continues to persevere with him.
Aaronson put in a shift, winning more tackles than any other player – even though he was subbed off on 77 minutes. Speaking afterwards, Farke explained why he picked Aaronson and praised his training levels.
“I’m very happy [with Brenden]. Two players in the offence who had not started, Noah and Dominic. Noah is not the guy that covers lots of distance, he’s the guy that has unbelievable skills and can deliver a spark.
“When you have this, you need a third offensive player [Aaronson] to cover lots of distance. He deserved his chance; he’s been excellent in training. With Sessegnon, we needed someone to cover more ground.”
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
MORE LEEDS UNITED STORIES
Daniel Farke explains why Brenden Aaronson is not at Barcelona
The stats show that Aaronson was Leeds’ second-best player on the day, with a FotMob rating of 7.0 – behind only Karl Darlow. Only two players won more duels than him, and he led the way with tackles.
Aaronson did what Farke wanted him to do. But of course, the attacking output is lacking. Aaronson did have a good chance to score and his flick at the near post was turned around for a corner by Bernd Leno.
Photo by Alex Caparros – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
Farke said that if Aaronson would play for Barcelona, if he could be as good in the final third, as he is when it comes to defending: “I’ve rarely seen a winger defend Sessegnon and Fulham’s left side so well.
“They cut opponents here to pieces with their left side, but Brenden was excellent. If he had the same quality in the offence, he would play for Barcelona and not a newly-promoted side,” Farke continued.
When Leeds go to Wolves next weekend, it will be interesting to see who Farke starts with on the wings. It is fair to say that Okafor and Dominic Calvert-Lewin will now start, but who gets the nod on the right?