LEEDS UNITED manager Daniel Farke has been reminiscing on the good old days as he laments his squad’s various international call ups.
The Yorkshire outfit sit top of the Championship with just a two-point cushion to Sheffield United in second place.
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With just nine matches remaining in the campaign, there is little room for error.
Farke’s squad has been pulled apart by international call ups as they look to cement promotion back to the Premier League for the first time since their relegation in 2022/23.
Stalwart defender Joe Rodon and 10-goal winger Dan James have both been summoned to Craig Bellamy’s Wales squad.
Israel’s Manor Solomon, Belgium’s Largia Ramazani, and Japan’s Ao Tanaka are all also set to travel for March internationals.
More squads are yet to be announced for the March fixtures.
As he aims to carry on a title push amid the fatigue and injuries that tend to accompany international breaks, Farke looked back to one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s old tricks.
Nicky Butt, who played 12 years under Ferguson, explained the trick.
He said: “At one stage, there was nine of us [up for international duty] and he would pull one or two of us out and let the other six go.”
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Farke has said he would love to do the same, but changing times meant he could not get away with it.
He said: “Sadly, the days of SIr Alex Ferguson are over, who could just call the national team managers and say; ‘No, no, listen I keep my players’.
“I can’t do this. I can ask carefully sometimes for a little bit of help but yeah, the days that you could just resist sending your players are sadly over.
“I hope the lads involved in international games will come through without injuries.”
The German signed to Leeds in autumn 2023, with club chairman Paraag Marathe saying he trusted Farke to return the club to the Premier League.
Leeds flirted with promotion last season, finishing third in the Championship before losing 0-1 to Southampton in the final.
