Final decision on Daniel Farke sack reached as Leeds ‘scrap’ initial plan | OneFootball

Leeds United are ready to retain Daniel Farke’s services into next season and possibly beyond, should he complete the job of steering the club to Premier League safety, while the manager has been described as “brilliant” by Manchester United great, Roy Keane.

Farke is now into his third season in the Elland Road hotseat, and has collected an impressive 71 wins from his 141 games at the helm, giving him a win percentage record of 50.4%. And despite tasting defeat on just 30 occasions in that time, the German has seen his future as Leeds United manager called into question on more than one occasion during the duration of this season.

Indeed, doubts over his future were first called into question last season, shortly after the club secured promotion to the Premier League, raising questions about his suitability to manage at the very top level.

Furthermore, after a bleak run of form left Leeds on the cusp of sinking into the bottom three earlier this season, The Guardian claimed the 49-year-old was just ‘two games from the sack’ ahead of a daunting run of fixtures against Chelsea and Liverpool.

But a change of formation has been the catalyst for a major improvement at Leeds and, having lost just four of their subsequent 23 games, the Whites are not only on the cusp of survival, but are also through to their first FA Cup semi-final since 1987.

A win at home to Wolves on Saturday can move Leeds nine points clear of safety, with 18th-placed Wolves not due to kick off until 5.30pm that day.

Now, according to Football Insider, Leeds United will make a public decision to stick with Farke into next season once Premier League safety is confirmed and abandoning any pre-conceived suggestions that he will be sacked if the club go straight back down.

An insider told the website: “Leeds’ record has been fantastic of late. They’ve only lost two games in their last 10, and when you see the way they played against Man Utd compared to other relegation-threatened sides, they’re worlds apart.

“They’ll be alright now, they played very, very well against Man Utd and collectively as a team they have enough to get over the line. That’s thanks in large part to Daniel Farke and the job he’s done there this season.

“I know we spoke before about whether he could be sacked, the fans weren’t happy with a couple of things, and the board had some question marks.”

The source added: “Those suggestions can be scrapped now. I expect they’ve already made a decision, and they’ll want to stick with him next season. If he can keep up this form with them being hard to beat and maybe add a bit of quality to the squad, I’m sure he’s the right man to keep taking them forward.”

Plaudits for Daniel Farke keep coming

TEAMtalk has always insisted that Farke, whose contract at Elland Road runs until June 2027, would need to earn the right to sign a new deal and had much to prove to the hierarchy this season.

Should he steer the club to safety and potentially lead them to a first FA Cup final since 1973, surely they would have little choice but to hand the 49-year-old a much-deserved extension.

The German is certainly the toast of Elland Road right now, having also helped the club claim a first league win at Manchester United since 1981 – a wait of some 45 years.

In light of that, Farke has enjoyed plenty of praise this week, with former Red Devils star Keane admitting he was hugely impressed by Leeds.

Keane said: “He’s a calm guy, but he was under huge pressure earlier this season. There was talk about then changing the manager in the summer, and then, when the sticky patch early in the season, they talked about him leaving then.

“But he’s proven to be a brilliant manager. Obviously, they’ve got the win tonight, and he also has them through to a cup semi-final. They’ve got a bit of momentum now. And the way they played tonight, they played with a lot of confidence and belief.”

Asked about Farke sinking to his knees at the final whistle, Keane commented: “And yeah, we saw his reaction at the end of the game. He’s quite a calm guy, but he’ll be fairly pleased with that tonight.”

The Irishman, since speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, claimed Leeds “played like Real Madrid” when beating the Red Devils on Monday night.

The manager has also earned strong acclaim from Simon Jordan on talkSPORT, with the pundit explaining why the German has proved himself a ‘multifaceted manager’ and with his previous relegation tag now being firmly shoved down his critics’ throats.