Leeds United news: Chris Sutton makes claim over Daniel Farke appointment as Whites boss drops Gray hint

Former Chelsea and Blackburn Rovers star Chris Sutton has praised Leeds United manager Daniel Farke and has tipped the Whites boss to lead the club to promotion this season. The former Norwich City manager has made a big impact since he was appointed at Elland Road during the summer and has overseen a major turnaround in fortunes throughout his first three months in charge.

After adding the likes of Ethan Ampadu, Joel Piroe and Joe Rodon to his squad during the summer transfer window, Farke seems to be inspiring a serious promotion bid out of his side and they will look to boost their push for a return to the Premier League when they visit Stoke City on Wednesday. Speaking about Farke on BBC 5 Live Sport, Sutton said: “In terms of Leeds fans wanting an attacking brand of football, he certainly ticks that box.

“I think he has had so much to deal with, there has been a big overturn of players, and of course I suppose his biggest issue is that all Leeds fans are wanting to find the next Bielsa. But I think he’ll get them up this season, I really do. Just because of his knowledge of the Championship, his nous, his know-how and the way he sets his teams up. So I think Leeds have done well to appoint him.”

Potters star makes ‘stronger’ Leeds claim

Stoke City defender Luke McNally has challenged his side to build on their weekend win against Sunderland when they face Leeds. The Potters took advantage of a sloppy performance from the Black Cats to help manager Alex Neil claim all three points against his former club. That has sent them into Wednesday’s meeting with the Whites on a high and McNally is determined to claim another win against ‘one of the stronger teams’ in the division.

He told Stoke’s official website: “I think you saw glimpses of quality but in the second-half we showed what a fighting team we can be and we just need to show that all the time now. Going into the next game, it’s easier to gather momentum than off a loss. We need to use that in our power now and we’re obviously playing one of the stronger teams next but I think we’ve shown in all the games here, Southampton they came here, that we can more than compete and we have to do that again on Wednesday.” Full story here.

Farke drops hint over Gray plan

Daniel Farke has admitted he ‘loves’ Leeds youngster Archie Gray and is determined to bring the best out of the talented midfielder. The England Under-19 international has already impressed during his first season in the season setup at Elland Road, making 14 appearances in all competitions and rewarding Farke’s faith with some fine displays.

When asked of Gray’s progress in his pre-match press conference, the Whites boss said: “First of all, we are not here in order just to make sure we develop Archie in a perfect position. Although we all love Archie and want to develop him and I have perhaps a reputation to bring young players though, the main target is we as Leeds United want to be successful. This is our only target and by doing this, if we can then develop and help our players, not just young but all the players in our squad, that is also quite beneficial.” Read everything Farke said in his pre-match press conference here.