Leeds United visit Russell Martin’s Southampton at St Mary’s Stadium in the Championship on Saturday afternoon and here are five things to look out for around the match
Should Leeds United avoid defeat at Southampton it will stretch their unbeaten run to seven matches. The last time they preserved a record of that length was the last time they were in the Championship.
In the run to the title of 2020, Marcelo Bielsa oversaw an eight-match stretch that propelled them to the trophy through June and July. The fact Daniel Farke is already taking the Whites to within touching distance of these precedents set by the Argentine, in September, underlines how well he has started.
Similarly, the last time the Whites put together five consecutive league clean sheets came under Bielsa in 2020. While the unbeaten run came after the Covid pause, the shut-outs were immediately preceding it.
The 2-0 win over Huddersfield Town, Luke Ayling day, at Elland Road on March 7, 2020, was the final of the five clean sheets. Again, it was a streak which played a massive role in getting Leeds to the title that season.
The trouble with last weekend’s win was so many players played well while there were several starters sitting out and watching on. It will be hard for Farke to make any changes to a team which followed his instructions so clearly seven days ago.
Jamie Shackleton is among those who can feel hard done by if he, again, makes way after playing well. Farke has made no secret of his respect for Ayling as an option at right-back.
Central defence is where all eyes will be trained at 11.30am. Pascal Struijk has barely put a foot wrong for several weeks, Liam Cooper was impressive last weekend and is the captain, while Joe Rodon was formidable before his unfortunate red card.
Central midfield will be a tight call too. Glen Kamara is more experienced and seasoned than Archie Gray, but the 17-year-old has been a special ingredient in the middle for Farke this season.
Few people will forget being inside Elland Road to watch Georginio Rutter break new ground last weekend. The French forward cut loose and seemed to be on another level to anyone else on the pitch by the time the shackles were coming off the second-half runaway train.
Can he reach the same heights in Hampshire? Will he play more pragmatically as Farke suggested last weekend?
This match will be the first time Farke and Russell Martin have locked horns on the touchline. Martin, nine years Farke’s junior, was approaching the end of his Norwich City career when the German arrived at Carrow Road in 2017.
The Saints boss has made it clear there was no fall-out between him and Farke in what became an amicable situation that made it clear Martin was not in the new boss’s plans at 31 years old. While there is respect between the two, it will be intriguing to see how emotions play out on the touchline in a high-stakes game for the hosts.
