Daniel Farke’s Leeds subs have long been a bone of contention. This is the good and the bad

Substitutions have always been a discussion point during Daniel Farke’s tenure as Leeds United manager.

Last season, the criticism levelled at the German was that he did not look to the bench often enough and when he did, it was too late in the game. Farke ranked seventh among Championship managers for the number of substitutes made throughout the season with 212 across 46 games (West Bromwich Albion’s Carlos Corberan topped the list with 234). This season, he has made at least three subs in each league game but his changes have led to questions about how effective they are, particularly in terms of attacking output.

After Leeds’ eight points from their first five games, the pressure is on Farke to turn around a mixed start — something he managed this time last year as his side became promotion contenders. Farke has acknowledged that there is little grey area in fan emotion regarding his substitutions. Get it right with a positive result and there are few grumbles. In the context of a defeat — such as the one at Elland Road against Burnley on Saturday — substitutions become a bone of contention.

But Farke’s record lies in that space between extremes. Despite the criticism, there were times last season when his substitutions worked perfectly, including Mateo Joseph coming on to score the equaliser against Watford in March. But there is also room for improvement.

Leeds’ record of game-changing impacts from the bench last season was about mid-table, with replacements putting Farke 14th among his peers when ranked by the goal involvement of subs (15). Ipswich Town’s subs led the way by being involved in an impressive 35 goals in the same period. Seeing them claw back points from improbable positions was a haunting feature of the season for Leeds, particularly as the race for the top two boiled down to one or the other of the two sides.

Both could overcome the odds. Ipswich’s 32 points won from being behind on 22 occasions in 2023-24 was a league high. Leeds were next-best at dragging themselves back into games with 25 points from 21 deficits.

Farke’s substitutions against Portsmouth on the opening day were a success — Brenden Aaronson came on and scored, assisted by fellow substitute Joel Piroe. There have been struggles too.

The 0-0 draw with West Brom proved a particularly flat showing in the wake of Georginio Rutter’s departure to Brighton and the defeat by Burnley highlighted the lack of spark from the bench despite Farke using all five of his subs. In the 68th minute, Piroe and Joe Rothwell came on for Aaronson and Ethan Ampadu. There were further changes in the 78th and 86th minutes, with Sam Byram, Ao Tanaka and Largie Ramazani brought on in those later windows.

From kick-off, Leeds set up in their usual 4-2-3-1 formation with Joseph leading the line as striker and Aaronson playing behind him in the No 10 role. Manor Solomon and Willy Gnonto occupied the wings. That four-player unit represented a fluid attack. Farke has brought on Piroe and Rothwell in four of the five league games, with the only exception being in the 0-0 draw at West Brom when Piroe started and Rothwell came on to replace him.

Neither is the type of player to stretch the opposition when Leeds are chasing games. With Burnley leading, Leeds altered their structure as they pushed for an equaliser in a much quieter second half. As shown in the two images below, Piroe played high and more like a second striker — effectively pushing United into something closer to a 4-4-2. After his well-taken goal against Hull City in the 2-0 win before the international break, the logic for deploying Piroe in a more advanced role was sound. That goal, as well as the majority of his 46 scored for Swansea City, came as a No 9 rather than in the deep-lying role Farke has fashioned for the 25-year-old.

Goals are more likely to be spread around this season than the 2023-24 campaign when top scorer Crysencio Summerville scored 21 times in all competitions. Piroe, who scored 14 goals, has the track record to be a double-digit striker again this year. The failure to sign a No 10 is the more talked about topic at Elland Road than a pressing feeling that they should have added another striker but the elusive 20-goal player feels necessary for a promotion-chasing side. Joseph’s second-minute miss against Burnley was one that a form striker should have put away. As Patrick Bamford returns to the squad following his lengthy absence with a knee injury, Farke’s dabble with Piroe as part of two up top presents an interesting option.

He is Farke’s most-used player from the bench this season and was among the most subbed-on players last season. Piroe played the most minutes among those regularly subbed on players (shown in the table below) and the question remains of whether Leeds have ever got best use of a player who cost them £10million (£13m) from Swansea City last summer.

The second-half lull against Burnley, where Leeds’ expected goals (xG) dropped off from 1.01 (first half) to 0.23 (second half), reflects an area for improvement for Farke’s side. As Joe Rodon made way for Tanaka, Farke opted to move to a back three of Byram, Ilia Gruev and Pascal Struijk (pictured below) in a bid to have more attack-minded players on the pitch.

However, in that system, they failed to build from the back and Burnley kept them hemmed in. The numbers spell out that inability to build any genuine attacks — according to Opta, after Byram and Ramazani were introduced by Farke in the 78th minute, completely changing Leeds’ system, the hosts did not have a single shot.

It is still early in the season but United’s record as the second-best team for winning points after going behind last season was a strength. Maintaining that ability to bounce back by finding a moment of quality or inspiration from the bench in tricky circumstances will be key.

Farke is no stranger to his substitutions coming under the microscope but nothing brings more scrutiny than a defeat to a promotion rival. With bottom club Cardiff City next up, finding form and fight from the bench could help Leeds settle a topsy-turvy start to the season.

(Top photo: George Wood/Getty Images)