Leeds United sent encouraging play-off final omen as Daniel Farke warning proved correct twice

Leeds United will hope to avoid a repeat of history when they face Southampton in the Championship play-off final on Sunday - in more ways than one.

History has not been kind to Leeds when it comes to the play-offs, with five previous attempts all ending in heartbreak via just about every avenue. Defeats have been equally painful whether in the semi-final, final or even the 1987 final replay defeat against Charlton, which followed a two-legged final.

The weight of those previous shortcomings will weigh heavier on supporters than it will the players, but consecutive regular-season defeats against Sunday’s opponents Southampton are much more fresh in the memory. Russell Martin’s side are on their own as the only side to do the double over Leeds this season and on both occasions looked to have had the better of their promotion rivals.

Granted, both fixtures had their own set of exceptional circumstances. Leeds’ final-day defeat came on a flat day with automatic promotion hopes all but over, while the 3-1 loss at St Mary’s in September played out with the almost ever-present Joe Rodon on the bench. But there is also an argument to say that Southampton had Leeds figured out and their style exposes the weaknesses of Daniel Farke’s tactics.

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That may well have been true during the regular season, at least to some extent, but the cliché of play-offs being a completely ball-game ring true every year. And this year looks no different.

Only the Championship showpiece remains, with play-off promotion already confirmed at League One and League Two level. Oxford United secured their rise into the Championship after beating Bolton Wanderers 2-0, while Crawley Town won by the same scoreline against Crewe Alexandra to climb into League One on Sunday.

An intriguing point for Leeds fans to note is that Oxford failed to beat Bolton home or away in the regular season and were even thumped 5-0 on the road, while Crawley were twice beaten by Crewe. In the play-offs, those past results go out of the window.

"The season does not matter now,” Whites boss Farke insisted ahead of the play-off semi-finals, having been reminded of back-to-back wins over Norwich. “It's a new competition. Two wins against Norwich do not matter. We had 46 games to earn the place in the play-offs. That's good, but it's a new competition and we have to concentrate on now rather than the past."

Farke is experienced enough to know past results mean little and his words are as true ahead of Sunday as they were before Norwich. Leeds progressed on account of their thrilling performance in Thursday’s 4-0 win at Elland Road, not the 3-2 win at Carrow Road in October or the tight 1-0 victory in January. The past counts for nothing come kick-off.

Last week’s semi-final clashes highlighted the gulf in class between the top-four and those below, with Leeds and Southampton both comfortable in their respective second-leg wins over Norwich and West Brom. There is little to separate the two when it comes to quality on the pitch, and so a return to the Premier League could well be decided by who has the psychological edge.

Southampton will take confidence into the final knowing not only that they beat Leeds twice, but they were good value on both occasions. Leeds will hope history doesn’t repeat itself, and only need to look at Oxford and Crawley for proof it doesn’t have to.