Leeds United's 'most important' transfer criteria revealed by Daniel Farke amid 'no coincidence' admission
Daniel Farke has offered more insight into Leeds United’s recruitment this summer
Physicality is at the heart of Leeds United's summer transfer business but Daniel Farke insists there are other, more important factors at play.
Anton Stach's €20m move from Hoffenheim made it six senior signings through the door already this summer. Five of them - Stach, Lukas Nmecha, Sebastiaan Bornauw, Gabriel Gudmundsson and Jaka Bijol - are 26 years years old. Sean Longstaff is the old man of the new boys, at 27. Stach and Bijol are both 6ft 4ins. Bornauw and Nmecha aren't that much smaller. Internally at Leeds the joke has been that their recruitment filters have got stuck on 26 and 6ft-plus.
Daniel Farke on Leeds United’s tall recruits
"I wouldn't say it's coincidence that they are all tall players, but of course, if you join the Premier League and you have one of the smallest groups, you expect that probably there is more pressure on you than there was in the Championship, you have to make sure that you're also good in defending crosses," he said. "There will also be more corner kicks, more wide area free-kicks against us. It's important to be really, really good and strong. And also, on the other hand, we are more forced to score more goals from set-pieces because I'm not sure if we can dominate all the games in the manner we did on Championship level."
Set-pieces were quickly identified as a key potential source of joy for a newly-promoted club looking to cling on in the Premier League and buck the recent trend of one-season wonders. The Premier League is also one of the most physical leagues in the world because it is where many of the sport's best athletes ply their trade. You have to be big, strong and fast. As Farke points out, you also need to be able to play football and he believes his new recruits can.
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"More important is they are really good players," he said. "So we don't want to play basketball with them. When these guys climb out of the bus, it's quite impressive. I quite like it. But more important is they're really good football players. When I speak about Sean Longstaff, his passing range, decisions. He's shown today [against SC Verl] he can control the game with his passing. The same with Anton Stach or Jaka Bijol - I want to see one centre back who is so reliable with his passing. They still fit 100 per cent in what we want to do, but they also add a special physicality."
Experience also key to Leeds United in Premier League
The age profile of the new group is no coincidence either. Farke did not want to go into the Premier League armed only with youthful excitement and potential or with proven veterans starting to eye the finish line of their career. Players with something worth showing off on their CV and something still to prove were his preference. Nmecha has Bungesliga experience and a point to prove about his ability to cut it in the Premier League. Stach has Bundesliga experience and a World Cup in his sights. Bijol has played in Serie A but has long harboured belief that he could play in the English top flight.
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"Speaking about the age, this is also what I wanted, because sometimes you underestimate as a newly-promoted side how important the experience is on this level but then, quite often, you go either for a 30- year-old guy with many, many games, but he's only on the way down in his career. I didn't want to do this.
“So we are ambitious, and we want to be back for good, and we want the players to develop with us as a club. And for that, we just want players who are still close to their prime and have the chance also to develop and on the other end, players who are not projects like 18 years old, who can be outstanding in two or three years."
Farke has echoed the words of many club sources who recognise the grim reality of a Premier League newcomer. The gulf between the top flight and the Championship has grown ever wider in recent seasons and the relegation zones after 38 games are sufficient proof. For that reason, signings with experience of the top level here or abroad were going to be vital.
"The pressure is on us as a newly-promoted side," he said. "They have to deliver straight away. So for that, I wanted players who have experience on Premier League level, like Sean, for example, on Bundesliga level, like Anton, Serie A level, like Jaka. So it's important for me to have players in a good age with a good experience, but they are not the finished product. So we didn't want to have projects. We didn't want to have players who are just happy to get another contract, and we want players who are ambitious. And this is more or less what I wanted to do, and also what we want to do in terms of our handwriting during this market."
All of that said, Farke has left the door open for a new recruit who sits outside the age profile. Players Leeds are known to be tracking - Rodrigo Muniz, Lucas Perri and Igor Paixão - were born either one or two years either side of the magic 1998 and 1999 mark, but they have also looked hard at 30-year-old Robin Zentner, wanted 21-year-old Habib Diarra and enquired about Christantus Uche, 22.
"I wouldn't rule out that in the end, there is also perhaps one project, or wouldn't rule out that there is perhaps if it fits from the position, also one player who's over 30," he said. "But the general headline about the signings is more like quality, experience, but on the way up the hill in their career. And this is more or less why we signed all these players."
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