Crystal Palace boss echoes Liverpool & Chelsea counterparts with Leeds United admission
Oliver Glasner has opened up on his plans to combat an unpredictable Leeds United side.
Leeds United’s new-found tactical unpredictability has been a point of focus for their opponent again this week, admits Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner.
A number of managers have been quizzed on which iteration of Leeds they could face in recent weeks, following Daniel Farke’s half-time formation switch at Manchester City. The Whites have started three games since in a 3-5-2 but been able to adapt in-game, and with great effect.
Against Liverpool and Brentford, Leeds reverted to a back-four after going behind and took a point in each, with no certainty as to what formation Farke could start with against Palace on Saturday. And Glasner, who confirmed his full starting-XI on Friday, admitted his side have had to prepare for either scenario.
“I would have preferred to play them not within 48 hours [of facing KuPS on Thursday],” Glasner said when asked about Leeds. “They have changed to a 3-5-2. I know Daniel Farke quite well from Germany. He’s a fantastic coach and a fantastic person.
“They have a nice structure. We have had to prepare and we watched them in advance. It’s a good team. They had more than 100 points in the Championship [last season], so you need to be good. And they’ve added a few players now.
“We don't think too much about the opposition because we have no influence. Maybe they change the system again. We have to be ready and they can, even against Brentford, change within the game."
Should Farke stick with a 3-5-2 formation, Lukas Nmecha’s absence due to a hamstring injury means it will likely be Noah Okafor alongside the in-form Dominic Calvert-Lewin. The pair combined to put Leeds 3-1 up against Chelsea before starting together against Liverpool and Brentford, with admittedly mixed success.
Crystal Palace boss praises Leeds United pair
Calvert-Lewin is on his best goalscoring run since 2020 with four goals in as many games and while Okafor hasn’t found the net since early October - in a 2-1 defeat at home to Tottenham Hotspur - he’s sparked plenty of promising attacks. And Glasner knows his defence will come up against a good pairing on Saturday.
“The two strikers, Calvert-Lewin and Noah Okafor - who I know from Red Bull Salzburg, a very quick player - I think it’s a good combination,” the Palace boss added. “One is tall, with a great header, the other one very quick. It’s a very good team. It will be a nice challenge for us.”
Farke could also start someone like Willy Gnonto alongside Calvert-Lewin, with the pair combining to equalise at Brentford last weekend. Gnonto has twice made a telling contribution off the bench in consecutive games, having won an important penalty with a darting run against Liverpool earlier this month.
There is also the option for Farke to revert to a back-four, deploying both Okafor and Gnonto in more natural wide positions while dropping one of Pascal Struijk or Jaka Bijol. Leeds have looked more well-suited to a 3-5-2 formation, however, but that unpredictability is giving them an early advantage in games.