Leeds United are in firm contention to secure promotion to the Premier League after missing out last season.
The Whites finished third and lost to Southampton in the play-off final last season. They are currently leading the Championship table with 72 points, four points ahead of third placed Burnley with a game in hand.
Leeds manager Daniel Farke has given an interview to Kicker and Transfermarkt.de have relayed his comments.
He says Leeds are “on a great run at the moment” as they look to return to the Premier League. The German is in his second season at Elland Road and his contract lasts until 2027.
Last summer, the English club had to sell some players to balance their books and ended up investing a part of that money to improve the squad. Farke has talked about Leeds’ strategy in the transfer market.
“Although the transfer surplus was unusual for Western Europe, it presented us with major challenges,” he said.
“After all, the expectations had not changed as a result. For us, promotion was once again the clear goal. However, we had to tackle this with much more limited resources. We had to be creative and show imagination, for example with the signing of Ao Tanaka from Fortuna Düsseldorf.
“The domestic market is overpriced, while at the same time the EFL stipulates that there must be at least eight Englishmen in the match-day squad.
“Conversely, this means that these players are in high demand and often correspondingly expensive. That’s why we also look abroad, where we can often find high-quality players on better terms.”
Farke explains that Leeds are a “sleeping giant with enormous potential”.
The former Norwich City manager has also detailed his motivation and long-term plans for the Championship club. He wants Leeds to be in a better state whenever he leaves the club.
“The Premier League is fiercely competitive, with the three promoted teams from the previous season, Southampton, Ipswich and Leicester, currently in the relegation places,” Farke explained.
“That shows how difficult the task is. But that’s exactly what motivates me, to break this cycle with Leeds and make the club successful in the long-term.
“[My motivation is] that when I leave Leeds United one day, I hand it over better than when I took over.”
