Leeds United man lifts the lid on Daniel Farke's 'serious' moments as laid-back persona not all it seems
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Dan James insists Daniel Farke’s laid back persona is not always on show during Leeds United training, with the manager happy to crack the whip when necessary.
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Hide AdFarke has built a reputation as the level head at Leeds, fronting questions and issues with a disarming surety in his various press conferences. The German has often been the face of the club when supporters want answers over transfer dealings, having to deal with the high emotions that come as part of the deal in West Yorkshire when explaining sensitive topics like the sales of Archie Gray, Crysencio Summerville and Georginio Rutter this summer.
But the Leeds boss is no pushover and has shown a certain assertiveness when needed, most notably going into major detail over his decision to start Joel Piroe behind Georginio Rutter during the early parts of last season. And James admits it is no picnic at Thorp Arch either, with Farke’s high standards ensuring everyone is on the ball.
“He’s been great,” James told the Second Tier podcast of Farke. “Obviously, coming back in he spoke to me, he told me how he wants me to play, how I’ll fit into his plans and from the start of the season, how I wanted to play was how he wanted me to play as a winger.
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Hide Ad“That was great to hear, gaining that trust from the manager and feeling valued was obviously great. What he did last season for me and the team was brilliant. He is quite a laid back guy but when things are serious he's serious.
“When it gets down to business, you have to be that serious because you don't perform like we do if we come in every day feeling laid back. He does have that about him but when we’re in training and games, he's very serious.”
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Hide AdJames is evidently thriving in such an environment, starting this season is much the same way he enjoyed the last. The Welshman got off the mark with a lovely dinked finish in the 2-0 win at Sheffield Wednesday last month and looks set for another pivotal campaign at Elland Road, having registered 13 goals and seven assists in the league last season.
Having missed the 20 win over Hull City and international duty with Wales due to a hamstring injury, James will be desperate to return for the visit of Burnley to Elland Road on Saturday, with competition for places rife once again. Loan signing Manor Solomon got an assist on debut against the Tigers and Largie Ramazani looked sharp off the bench, while Wilfried Gnonto has been excellent so far this season.