'I played for Leeds United and Liverpool - Europe should be the minimum aim at Elland Road'
It’s set to be an exciting Premier League season for Leeds United.
Former Leeds United striker Robbie Fowler believes a challenge for Europe could be on the cards at Elland Road next season.
Leeds over-achieved on their goal of survival during the 2025/26 campaign, finishing 14th and securing safety with three games to spare. Club chiefs will naturally look to improve season-on-season but memories of finishing ninth under Marcelo Bielsa and then being in a relegation battle are still fresh.
The difference this summer, so far at least, is the ability of 49ers Enterprises to build on that 14th-place finish with strong recruitment. They’ve already signed Harry Wilson and Tarik Muharemovic while a club-record £40million deal for Manchester City goalkeeper James Trafford is close.
Wilson and Muharemovic both impressed on Sunday as Leeds came from two goals down to beat Liverpool in the final game of their pre-season tour of America. And Fowler, who led the line for both clubs during his playing days, believes Daniel Farke and his squad should be looking up.
“It’s a conundrum for Leeds this season,” Fowler told LFCTV. “For me Leeds is a big club, so I think they should be getting in Europe as a minimum aim. But whether they can get near that or not is obviously a completely different conversation.
“I think when you look at their fanbase, you can see how big the club is and what the expectations are, they have to try finish higher up this season. I know they only came up the other year and finished 14th.
“They did struggle a bit at times last season. But then you have got to remember who you are, and that club has got to achieve big things and they have got to be aiming high this season.”
Leeds will be under no illusions about the challenge ahead next season, with the main goal once again being to survive. Only once they hit the region of 38 or 40 points can they start looking to climb the table with the aim being to hit that milestone as quickly as possible.
And if last season’s Premier League table is anything to go by, positions can be gained very quickly with a tight mid-table area. Leeds finished 14th last season but were as far away - eight points - from relegated West Ham as they were eighth-placed Brighton who secured Europa Conference League football.