Leeds United are making a splash this summer – and not just because players had the pleasure of rubbing shoulders with Michael Phelps in the United States last week.
The minority investor was there to watch his team play Liverpool off the park in the second half of a 4-2 friendly win in Chicago, with two training-ground throw-in routines that would not have looked out of place in the NFL matches Soldier Field usually hosts.
Phelps, the greatest Olympian of all time with 23 gold medals, has brought his kids up as Leeds fans and he will be hoping Daniel Farke’s team are ready to progress after a season battling to stay afloat upon their return to the Premier League.
Leeds have had an encouraging summer window so far that saw them win races to sign Harry Wilson on a free transfer and England goalkeeper James Trafford in a club-record £45million deal from Manchester City.
New £34million Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic, fresh from having his ankle trodden on by Folarin Balogun at the World Cup, looks a solid buy from Sassuolo to replace Pascal Struijk. And, with a couple more signings – a left back and another attacker are on the list – Leeds could have a squad ready to challenge the top half of the Premier League after finishing 14th last time out.
Some are even mentioning the dreaded ‘E’ word and want to take inspiration from Sunderland and Nottingham Forest, two clubs who managed to get into Europe within three years of promotion back to the top flight, as well as Brighton and Brentford.
Leeds turned on the style in Chicago last week against Liverpool, coming from 2-0 down to win 4-2
Daniel Farke put the squad through a gruelling pre-season. Many days saw two training sessions, with double workouts to condition the body for an arduous campaign ahead
Minority investor Michael Phelps was there to watch his team play Liverpool off the park in Chicago
Farke put the squad through a gruelling pre-season. Many days saw two training sessions, with double workouts to condition the body for an arduous campaign ahead. In the morning, they would be football-focused and, in the afternoon, sessions would be strength-based.
There were two days of fitness tests to start pre-season and the footballs have been out every day but one, with players feeling a difference on the pitch after Farke’s physically demanding routines.
Farke, who asks players to call him ‘boss’ and dislikes the moniker ‘gaffer’, took inspiration from Jurgen Klopp for his workouts that involve a 1km running drill known as the lactate test, which measures how long it takes for lactic acid to build quicker than the body can clear it. The longer, the better – and it exposed who was keeping fit and who had slacked over summer.
When Leeds were promoted 12 months ago, the recruitment team were ahead of the curve in noticing a trend in the Premier League. They knew the game was switching to a more direct style and many of their transfer targets were, for want of a more diplomatic phrase, big brutes. Anton Stach is 6ft 4in, Jaka Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw 6ft 3in, Lukas Nmecha and Sean Longstaff 6ft 1in.
This year, they will stick by that policy and 6ft 4in Muharemovic fits into it – but Leeds are keen for a bit of flair, too. Germany winger Julian Brandt was targeted but ended up going to Ajax. Former Fulham man Wilson, then, is the star attraction.
Several clubs, including Champions League-bound Aston Villa, had made a pitch to sign Wilson when it became clear he would follow manager Marco Silva out of the door at Craven Cottage. But he chose Leeds for a number of reasons.
One was the fact Leeds made a push to sign him 12 months earlier, which proved to Wilson that they did not simply want him because he was available for nothing. With the possibility of qualifying for the World Cup with Wales, Wilson did not want the turbulence of moving at that time.
Chairman Paraag Marathe has recently stepped aside from his position at the San Francisco 49ers to focus on his football ventures, including Rangers. He sold the winger a dream on the second of many calls between player and club. Marathe made Wilson feel wanted.
New 6ft 4in, £34m signing Tarik Muharemovic (right) adds to Leeds’ land of the giants
Several clubs, including Champions League-bound Aston Villa, had made a pitch to sign Harry Wilson, but he chose Leeds
Chairman Paraag Marathe has recently stepped aside from his position at the San Francisco 49ers to focus on his football ventures, and played a key role in convincing Wilson to join Leeds
He talked about the loud, proud and loyal fanbase and discussed how Leeds were in the process of redeveloping Elland Road to increase its capacity.
‘After the first call I had with Leeds, with the chairman about the direction of the club, they were my number one choice,’ Wilson told us this week. ‘I spoke to a couple of other teams and nothing changed my mind.
‘The ownership group, the plans they have for the club. They know the size of the club with the fanbase and the history and the work they’re doing to the stadium already to increase the capacity, the investment they’re putting into the squad. It’s all just going in one direction and that’s what I want to be a part of.’
Marathe and a phone call from Farke, who tried to sign Wilson at his former club Norwich City, went a long way – but nothing sweetened the deal more than the persistence of club captain Ethan Ampadu, a Wales team-mate.
‘I almost had to block Ethan!’ laughed Wilson. ‘He played a big role. I’m really close with all the Welsh boys here. DJ (Dan James), I’ve played with since we were 14. Joe (Rodon), similar.
Asked about his ambitions, Wilson – who had the best season of his career last term, with ten league goals and seven assists – added: ‘Clubs have shown in recent years that the first season back in the Premier League, it’s all about making sure you stay up. But in the end, Leeds stayed up really comfortably last season.
‘When you look at the likes of Sunderland and Forest, who’ve come up in recent years and have got into Europe, that’s definitely an aim that we can have.
‘But I think that second season syndrome has been the case with a few teams. So this season let’s try and build on what the club created last year, that strong base, making sure our home form is good, which is massive and let’s see where that takes us.’
Harry Wilson (left) adds to the Welsh contingent in Leeds’ squad, including Daniel James (second left), Ethan Ampadu (right) and Joe Rodon (not pictured)
Wilson believes Leeds can take inspiration from the likes of Sunderland and Nottingham Forest in qualifying for Europe soon after promotion to the Premier League
Farke is set to stick by the back-five formation that turned his fortunes around last term. The boss had been sleepwalking towards the sack as Christmas approached, with Leeds in the relegation zone with a run of six defeats in the seven games leading up to December.
But after the switch, Leeds lost only five of 25 matches and reached an FA Cup semi-final.
Farke was criticised for his negative tactics at Wembley and knows he must build on solid defensive foundations with more exciting football this time around.
Trafford is a marquee signing. Some City observers believe he should have been given the No 1 jersey ahead of Gianluigi Donnarumma and many in the England set-up expect him to be the long-term successor to Jordan Pickford.
Comfortable in possession and a strong shot-stopper, it is an excellent addition, beating Newcastle United to the punch. Business is not done yet and a versatile attacker is top of the list. Dominic Calvert-Lewin had a fine season, scoring 15 times in all competitions, but needs help in sharing the goals around, with none of his team-mates managing more than eight.
Farke believes US international Brenden Aaronson is vastly underrated but another creative outlet would be welcomed with open arms, especially after Jack Harrison departed for MLS side New England Revolution. A deputy for injured left back Gabriel Gudmundsson is also wanted.
The boss has three more friendlies to fine-tune his squad: RB Leipzig and Augsburg at home on back-to-back Saturdays, and a clash with rivals Manchester United in Dublin at Croke Park on Wednesday.
Farke fell into coaching by accident having graduated in economics and originally wanted to be a sporting director.
This is his third crack at the Premier League after two relegations with Norwich, but sources insist he is growing every week and he believes that relationships have a greater impact than tactics.
Farke believes US international Brenden Aaronson is vastly underrated but another creative outlet would be welcomed with open arms
Sources insist Farke is growing every week and he believes that relationships have a greater impact than tactics
A literature nut whose favourite author is Gabriel Garcia Marquez, he also likes 19th-century poet Walt Whitman. The American’s best-known line ‘I contain multitudes’ speaks to how leaders must contradict themselves to find answers.
Farke and the hierarchy will be mulling those over in the coming weeks: how to maintain Leeds’ solid base but still take attacking strides? How to keep his trademark calm demeanour while demanding more? How to be more ambitious in the transfer market without it coming back to bite financially?
If they can get the answers right, they can be successful this season. Just maybe not quite as successful as Mr Phelps.
