Leeds United already have the answer to 'only' Daniel Farke criticism as Sunderland switch-up mooted

As Leeds United chased an equaliser at Elland Road on Sunday a set-piece felt their most likely route - and so it was.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Tarik Muharemovic were already hatching their plan as Anton Stach walked over to the corner flag. “You win first contact and I’ll spin in behind,” the striker probably said, doing exactly that before out-muscling Manchester United’s Bryan Mbeumo and finishing well on his way to ground.

That equaliser was the second of only three real chances Leeds had on Sunday with all arriving from dead ball situations. Nico Elvedi produced a good save from Senne Lammens with his header of a Stach free-kick before the midfielder saw an added-time effort blocked by Noussair Mazraoui during the fallout from an Ethan Ampadu long throw.

Leeds had no such joy from open play on Sunday, with wayward crosses or snatched shots drawing groans inside Elland Road. Farke himself lamented the lack of end-product: "The problem was there were too many strikes over the crossbar and too many crosses were then even a bit too long and this situation killed then a bit our momentum.

"I think otherwise we would have capitalised even more and we would have won this game. With a bit more quality in our final third I think we could have even won it but that's more less the only thing I can criticise."

It’s important to note that Leeds have enjoyed a really impressive start to the season. They are seventh and that position is thoroughly deserved, as were points taken from top opponents like Brighton and Brentford.

But Sunday’s frustrations highlighted an area of improvement for Farke and his squad in that they are struggling to create chances from open play and becoming too reliant on set-pieces. According to Opta, Leeds have created a total Expected Goals of 9.74 which is the 13th highest total across the division.

For a team whose foundations are built on a brilliant defence, that’s a perfectly acceptable number but 4.51xG - almost half of the total - is from set-pieces. That leaves an open-play xG of 5.23, which is the fourth worst in the league.

At present, that lack of open-play creativity hasn’t been a big problem because Leeds are so dangerous from dead balls. Their set-piece xG of 4.51 is the highest in the league and makes up just over 46 per cent of their total xG - again the division’s highest percentage and by some margin, with Brentford second on 36 per cent.

But against teams more capable of coping with set-pieces, Leeds need more with the ball in play. Weekend opponents Sunderland, for example, have conceded 2.65 xG from set-pieces but a whopping 11.65xG from open play.

Furthermore, they’ve faced 102 shots with an average xG recording per shot of 0.14 - the joint-highest in the league. That suggests opposing teams are able to carve out high-value chances on a fairly regular basis, as Bournemouth did so readily last Sunday.

Personnel change could bring much-needed unpredictability

Against Manchester United, Jayden Bogle was Leeds’ creator-in-chief with Farke’s current starting-XI built on stability. They’ve been excellent defensively and solid in a midfield three, but forward pair Noah Okafor and Calvert-Lewin are both more finishers than creators.

Changing the current set up risks conceding some of that solidity but in turn could improve Leeds in the final third. The introduction of someone like Harry Wilson, for example, in place of a midfielder and return to a 3-4-2-1 formation adds spark.

Wilson hasn’t hit the ground running since his summer arrival but remains far from written off, his one league start coming on the opening weekend. The Welshman showed at Fulham his ability to both create and finish, while his guile is a nice antidote to the pace and power of Okafor on the other side.

It’s also worth noting that Farke hasn’t made a change to his starting-XI for five games. Leeds are settled, and that is no bad thing, but they have lost that sense of unpredictability that kept opponents guessing.

Farke has regularly switched between 3-4-2-1 and 3-5-2 depending on the opponent, even reverting to a flat back four during some games - including at the Stadium of Light last season to great effect. Sometimes even just that change of shape can ask questions, pull a defender out of position and open up space to create.

Leeds are sturdy, but final-third spark is lacking. Lean too far the other way and you risk becoming too open. At the minute, set-piece threat gives Farke some breathing space but he will want to see more from open play. Perhaps a run of football for someone like Wilson can provide that.