Ex-Leeds United defender tells Daniel Farke what he 'must' do next season amid Championship promotion message
Leeds United started slow last season and were made to pay the price.
Danny Mills has urged Leeds United to make the most of pre-season with a ‘fast start’ needed to provide the greatest chance of getting promoted.
Leeds missed out on an instant return to the Premier League in heart-breaking fashion last season, losing 1-0 against Southampton in the play-off final at Wembley. Daniel Farke’s side racked up an incredible 90-point total during the regular season but fell short of Leicester City and Ipswich Town, becoming the first team since 1998 to reach such a total and fail to go up.
Having spent large parts of last season chasing the likes of Leicester, Ipswich and Southampton, Leeds were unable to keep up the pace they set in the new year but Farke reflected on a slow start to the campaign as key in deciding his side’s fate. The Whites won just three of their opening nine games as uncertainty over players surrounded the club, but they are better placed this summer and Mills insists that stability must be the catalyst for a quicker start.
“Leeds know what to do to get promoted,” Mills told the Real EFL. “They were so close last season, whether the pressure just got to them in the end, I am not sure. One issue that Farke had was the merry go round this time last year at the start of the season. You need on average two points a game to get promoted and last year Leeds United didn’t start well at all. It took time to get them going.
“Now, a play-off defeat is hard to get over, but Leeds must start the season well. It’s important they get up and running quickly and getting points on the board. Pre-season is big for them, to ensure they are ready to go from the opening day. Leeds will have pressure, but they have a good enough squad to start the season well.”
Leeds have just over three weeks until the start of their 2024/25 Championship season, with newly-promoted Portsmouth at Elland Road on the opening weekend. A young Whites side faced Rangers in a behind-closed-doors friendly on Tuesday, with a more senior side expected at League Two Harrogate Town on Friday.
Farke and his squad then head to Germany for a training camp which will involve more friendlies against local teams, with Leeds returning to Elland Road to welcome Valencia at the start of August - one week before the visit of Portsmouth. After that opening weekend, the Whites face West Brom, Sheffield Wednesday, Hull City and Burnley to round off an intriguing first five league fixtures.
Leeds look set for a more stable summer in which, following the £40m sale of Archie Gray to Tottenham Hotspur, business is done on their terms but while the club are no longer actively looking to sell, exits are still on the cards. Glen Kamara’s move to Stade Rennais is expected to go through shortly, while Everton are thought to have re-ignited interest in Wilfried Gnonto after missing out on Hull’s Jaden Philogene.