It does now appear that Daniel Farke’s days as Leeds United manager are very much numbered.
This isn’t exactly the biggest shock in the world, considering the Whites have now lost five of their last six Premier League games, with the Aston Villa loss sending them into that dreaded bottom three.
Reports are indicating that the German’s sacking looks inevitable amid doubts over whether he is the correct long-term man at Elland Road, albeit with a succession plan seemingly not yet in place.
Unfortunately, Farke looks as if he will fall victim to a fate that even the great Marcelo Bielsa had to come to terms with in the Premier League.
Not even a colossal 81 wins in charge could save the revered Argentine from the sack in the end, with far less sadness on display when Jesse Marsch was given his marching orders after the South American, when looking at his up-and-down stint in West Yorkshire.
Marc Roca's Leeds woes under Marsch
The new Canada boss would only muster up a weak 11 wins from the pressurised dug-out, in contrast, but that isn’t to say it was all doom and gloom while he occupied the hot seat.
Indeed, Marsch would steer the Whites to safety during the 2021/22 season after picking up the pieces from Bielsa, with a memorable away win at Liverpool even on his resume.
Still, a fair few of the signings the American signed off on during his brief stay in England were extremely hit-and-miss, including the one-season wonder of Marc Roca.
Initially, the Spaniard stood out as a rock-solid option in defensive midfield, with Leeds’ unbeaten start to the 2022/23 season seeing Roca win a high 15 duels in wins over Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea.
Yet, much like Luis Sinisterra, who showed flashes of his excellence at Leeds with five Premier League goals put away, Roca’s efforts ultimately meant nothing, as Leeds succumbed to relegation during his only season at the club.
Pundit Adrian Durham would even state, during his brief time in West Yorkshire, that he wasn’t sure if Roca had the calibre to be a “Premier League footballer”. By the end of the campaign, he was merely a bit-part player, too, despite such early promise.
Leeds will hope history isn’t repeating itself now with this promising summer acquisition, who has gone off the boil somewhat in recent weeks.
Leeds' next Roca in the making
To make matters worse for the Whites, Roca would end up returning to home comforts in La Liga smoothly, having looked far more impressive back at Real Betis.
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Indeed, as per FBref, he currently ranks in the top 1% of midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues for assists per 90, as well as in the top 10% for interceptions and the top 17% for tackles, showcasing an all-around quality that was sorely lacking at Elland Road.
Much like the Betis number 21, Anton Stach was a notable midfield purchase this summer from Europe, with £17.4m splashed out on the German, after he had collected a weighty five goals and 16 assists in the Bundesliga for the likes of Hoffenheim.
He has packed his shooting boots for England, too, with this outrageous free-kick against Wolves earlier in the season making him a fan’s favourite amongst Leeds supporters packed into Molineux.
During the same game, he also picked up an assist, while winning a combined eight tackles and duels.
Yet, since that standout performance against the bottom-of-the-table Old Gold, Stach has failed to consistently deliver, with his form out of sorts against Nottingham Forest at the start of the month, which culminated in the German completing zero successful dribbles and losing possession a high 15 times.
Games played
6
Games started
4
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Accurate passes
153/187
Total duels won
22/40
Looking at the table above, Stach has only won 22 of his following 40 duels since his man-of-match-worthy display in the West Midlands, with Farke even pushing him down to the bench on occasion, which is a fate Roca became very much used to during the latter stages of his hot-and-cold Leeds stint.
Farke has even openly come out and said that Stach needs to “step up” amid a concern that his performances have gone downhill, with relegation staring Leeds in the face, even with glimpses of promise here and there from the ex-Hoffenheim star.
The under-pressure German will hope Stach listens to his words and gets back to his best shortly.
If he doesn’t, and he fades into the background like Roca, relegation looks to be on the cards, as the walls begin to be “slowly closing in” on the ex-Norwich City manager, as per the Athletic’s Beren Cross.
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