Although the takeover by the 49ers still hasn’t been ratified by the EFL, it’s been reported today that his appointment will be formally announced by the club on Monday. And the word from Norwich City is that he is likely to be a very good appointment.
The Guardian and BBC Leeds’ very own Adam Pope have reported that terms have been agreed for Daniel Farke to become the latest occupant of the Leeds United hot seat. Adam Pope claimed that "Daniel Farke is expected to become Leeds United’s new manager and hopes to be installed in time for the Championship squad’s return for pre-season training on Monday.”
The odds on the German getting the job shortened considerably when we heard earlier in the week that his main rival Patrick Vieira is likely to be appointed as the new manager of Strasbourg. There is no news on the next destination for Scott Parker, the third member of the shortlist, but hopefully he will be heading for a decent cardigan shop to buy some knitwear that’s a bit less dull than his brand of football.
The 46-year-old left with Borussia Mönchengladbach at the end of last season and is expected to be joined in West Yorkshire by his long-term assistants Eddie Riemer, Christopher John and Chris Domogalla. That quartet worked together at Carrow Road, and have faithfully followed him from club to club ever since.
Leeds fans have taken note of the two promotions from the Championship that Farke has on his CV from his time at Norwich, but there is concern that they didn’t manage to last more than one season in the Premier League on either occasion. So to get a bit of expert local knowledge about his time at Carrow Road, I asked my friend and Norwich fan Richard Woods how he is now regarded in those parts.
He tells me "Daniel Farke is an excellent coach and a lovely chap. The football was amazing and Farkeball was brilliant to watch. Pep Guardiola was a big admirer after our 3-2 win against them at Carrow Road. However, the style of play requires investment and on both occasions in the EPL a pea shooter against a shotgun is inadequate.”
He was badly let down by the board, particularly our DoF Stuart Webber, as he was given far too many poor signings in the EPL once we’d walked the Championship twice. But he will always be held in the highest esteem, unlike those that sacked him to try and save their own skin. The football in his time at Norwich was some of the best I’ve seen in my 40+ years watching City, so I’m sure he’ll do an excellent job and you’ll certainly get value for money”.
All of which sounds very encouraging, given that he does manage to get us back into the promised land of the Premier League the 49ers would undoubtedly be able to call on far greater resources than Delia and co. The only worrying aspect of the above is that Stuart Webber has been reported to be a candidate to be our next director of football. Having just got rid of one DoF with a patchy record in the transfer market, we don’t need another one!
There is still no word on when the takeover is going to be formally ratified, but Phil Hay told the Square Ball podcast that it’s likely to come in the coming days. Hay said there is no inherent problem with any of the investors, it’s just that there are quite a few of them in the consortium, and they all need to be checked out. And the EFL weren’t able to start the process until the 49ers finally shook hands on their deal with Radz on 9th June.
Once everything is in place, we will be able to start the serious business of signing some incoming players, to replace the dozen or so members of the relegated squad who are said to be on their way to escape from their declining pay packets. And by the sound of it, we’re heading for exciting times once again!
Many thanks to Richard Woods for his help with this article.