Daniel Farke urged to make big Leeds United selection call vs Tottenham with star 'screaming' for start

Leeds United midfielder Sean Longstaff has been backed to start against Tottenham Hotspur this weekend after a string of encouraging substitute appearances.

Longstaff is yet to be named in a Premier League starting-XI this season but has proven effective in recent introductions off the bench. The midfielder came close to scoring twice against Sunderland and injected some attacking impetus into the side at Bournemouth last weekend.

With Leeds struggling to score - they’ve drawn a blank in three of their last five games - and similar midfielder Anton Stach out of form amid a recent foot injury, Longstaff could stake a claim to start. And in this week’s Episode of the Inside Elland Road podcast, host Chris O’Connor posed the question.

“I definitely feel like his cameos recently have perhaps swayed me to thinking I wouldn't mind seeing him start,” he said. “I think Stach seems out of form. He’s coming back from an injury but I think it could be quite good for him psychologically.

“I think out of all our midfielders, Longstaff seems to be the one who can impact the final third the most at the moment. And maybe, could he start or at least maybe get a 30-minute cameo rather than just 10, 15?”

Longstaff got 26 minutes at Bournemouth and while he was at fault for the Cherries’ second goal, there were at least signs of attacking intent. YEP Leeds writer Lee Sobot agreed that a place in the starting line-up could come this weekend.

“I think he's the one that screams to me at the minute, that’s maybe worth a go in the side,” he explained. “You've got to remember with Longstaff, it's easy to forget that he was a very key player at the start of last season. He got an awful lot of starts in a row, had a really good start to the season and is a very, very capable player.

“He’s very energetic, gets into the box. He is the one at the moment. I think the bottom line is, if there's one player that's screaming for a shot at the XI, if you're going to change things up, it's probably Sean Longstaff at the moment.”

And fellow reporter Kyle Newbould also agreed, pointing to Longstaff’s ability to time runs into the box and finish during a period in which Leeds are struggling to score. He also noted the former Newcastle man’s similarity to Stach when it comes to physical profile.

“I think when Leeds are lacking goals and they're lacking creativity, sometimes you just need a well-timed run into the box and something to fall your way,” he added. “It could be a cross that's aimed at Calvert-Lewin, but it deflects out to the edge of the box, and that's the kind of place where you see Longstaff coming in and producing the finish.

“Especially with Stach’s injury, he’s been struggling with that but is maybe trying to play through it and you almost think it's early in the season, there's no disasters yet. Leeds are in a good position, they're grinding out results for the most part. Is it worth just giving him some time off?

“In that instance, unless Longstaff is in there I worry about the midfield physicality in terms of the size and the running power. So someone like Sean Longstaff, who is stylistically quite similar in that he'll cover lots of ground, he'll win the duels and he'll get into the box. I think there's definitely a shout to be had for him starting.”