'Gut-wrenching' - Leeds United play-off advantage outlined by pundit as Daniel Farke task laid bare

Leeds United supporters could have a pivotal role to play over the coming weeks, says former Watford forward Troy Deeney. After missing out on automatic promotion on the final day of the regular Championship season, Leeds now have a play-off campaign to prepare for with Norwich City their semi-final opponents.

The Whites will go to Carrow Road this Sunday to take on Daniel Farke's former side and they'll hope to gain the upper hand in the tie ahead of the second leg at Elland Road on Thursday, May 16. Should Leeds emerge victorious over the two legs, they will have a date at Wembley Stadium to look forward to against the winner of the other semi-final between Southampton and West Bromwich Albion.

Leeds are the bookmakers' favourites to go on and regain a place in the Premier League at the first time of asking, but given they approach the end of season tournament on the back of suffering four defeats in their last six games, there are question marks about their form and confidence. As such, Farke not only has the job of trying to lift his players after overcoming the disappointment of missing out on a top two finish, he must also help them bounce back to their very best and show mental resilience.

For Deeney, Farke and his coaching staff hold the key going into this Sunday's meeting, but the Elland Road faithful could also end up making a real difference.

"You would expect Leeds to go up if everybody plays to the best of their ability. Leeds have got the best team," Deeney said on Sky Sports. He [Farke] has to believe in that positivity because there is another go. I think they have got to a point now where that's going to be really gut-wrenching. He has obviously got to go back to Norwich with the old affiliation with the club.

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"The pressure is on those two teams (Leeds and Southampton). Everyone expects a Leeds-Southampton final so for the other two it's like 'go play, stay in the game and enjoy it.' Those guys can't do that; there is a level of expectation now. With the form Leeds are in going into this, that fan-base is going to be a little bit like 'hold on, are we sure we can get up here?' If they go a goal down, that could turn very, very quickly.

"We have all played there (Elland Road) when it is not great. I've played there on an away day and it is a great place when they go against the team so that fan-base has really got to rise and get everyone back on side if they want to be successful."

Deeney knows all about the highs and lows of the Championship play-offs, of course, with the striker scoring a dramatic winner against Leicester City to send Watford to Wembley in 2013.