Exclusive:Daniel Farke sent 'play with fire' warning amid Leeds United FA Cup draw and Premier League priority
The Leeds United boss has two massive Premier League games to come before next month's FA Cup meeting with West Ham.
The strength of Daniel Farke’s FA Cup quarter-final line-up will likely depend on how Leeds United fare in their two Premier League games beforehand, according to former Whites assistant coach Gus Poyet.
Leeds reached the last eight of the FA Cup for the first time in 23 years following Sunday’s 3-0 fifth-round win over Norwich City, with goals from Sean Longstaff, Gabriel Gudmundsson and Joel Piroe. The Whites will travel to West Ham on the weekend of April 4/5 after they beat fellow Premier League outfit Brentford on penalties last night.
Farke rotated heavily at home to Norwich and while a trip to Wembley feels within touching distance, it cannot distract from the primary goal of Premier League survival. Leeds face Crystal Palace and Brentford before that quarter-final tie, with Poyet suggesting the outcome of those games could have a bearing on the starting-XI at West Ham.
“I think it's a great opportunity and a good game for both teams,” he told the YEP, via Gambling.com who rank and compare licensed UK casinos. “I think it's a good game for Leeds to go there and have a chance of reaching the semi-finals. So I think it's a decent draw, even if West Ham are in much better shape than maybe two or three months ago.
“I think it will depend on how the next two Premier League games go before that, where they are in the league and what they think at that time. The main objective is to stay in the Premier League, so it's a tricky one for the coach because they are not safe yet.”
How many points do Leeds United need to focus on FA Cup?
Leeds will not be mathematically safe by the time of their quarter-final, but they could take a huge step towards survival in the interim. Farke’s side travel to a Crystal Palace side they thumped 4-1 in the reverse fixture before hosting Brentford, two games will certainly be targeting for points.
West Ham, meanwhile, host Manchester City this weekend before a trip to Champions League-chasing Aston Villa before the March international break. Tottenham Hotspur and Nottingham Forest also go head-to-head later this month with at least one guaranteed to drop points.
“I love Leeds. I've been there and I had a great time. I always think it’s a great place to work and the relationship with the fans, it was exceptional,” Poyet added. “But I know that playing West Ham after getting six points [over the next two games] is not the same as playing them after getting zero.
”You can say ‘well what about three or four [points]?’ I don’t know, but getting zero is a big problem. If they lose the two games, forget about the cup. Let's not play with fire. If they get three, four or six, I think there is a good chance the coach is going to play his best team.”