There is renewed optimism around Elland Road after Leeds United’s win vs Chelsea
Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter
00:31, 04 Dec 2025Updated 10:32, 04 Dec 2025
Daniel Farke’s future has been questioned(Image: Visionhaus/Getty Images)
This has to be Leeds United’s new formation. It has to be. The 3-5-2 system was not a flash-in-the-pan trick at Manchester City. It is indeed what draws on United’s strengths best and gives them the best chance of staying in this league.
CLub World Cup champions Chelsea were title challengers going into the game – some will have doubts over that now. But that does not take away from Leeds’ performance. The game plan worked sublimely and the first half was their best 45 minutes this season.
Could Daniel Farke now use this as his base formation going forward? “Yes of course it can be. My football is never married with base formations,” he said.
He went on to caveat that, though: “It always depends also on how the opponent plays, where you would allow them possession, which players are in form and ready to go, if you want to surprise the opponent little.”
That’s a given, and the correct stance. But it’s hard to see how Leeds don’t line up in 3-5-2 as a default mechanism.
Farke job security
If the second half performance against Man City gave Farke a little time, the result on Wednesday has given him bags of it. He is by no means out of the woods yet but the ship has turned rather abruptly over the last 135 minutes of action.
Questions around his job security have lingered for a few weeks amid poor results but he might have found a winning formula – or at least a very competitive one – just in the nick of time. Chairman Paraag Marathe was in attendance and gave Farke a hearty slap on the back when he was conducting a radio interview.
Make of that what you will. But Farke has taken a big step forward to retaining his job with Leeds now out of the relegation zone. They will stay above it should West Ham fail to beat Manchester United later today. Oh the irony.
Bijol and the back three
Of course, Jaka Bijol got things underway with a terrific header after six minutes, marking his maiden Whites strike. He was delighted after full-time, though believes Leeds can play “even better”.
Bijol has looked the sturdiest he has been this season within the back three over the last game-and-a-half. He was placed in the centre of the trio with Joe Rodon to his right and Pascal Struijk to his left.
Whenever Struijk let a ball in behind, Bijol was there to clear, and vice versa. It’s perhaps no surprise he didn’t have to cover Rodon much.
But the overarching piece of encouragement is that the defence seemed more resolute and compact in the back five. The wing-backs felt more licence to push on and leakages were plugged. Again, this has to continue going forward.
Confidence vs Liverpool
The confidence Leeds will have gained over the last two matches will have been seismic. At the start of the season, Saturday’s game against Liverpool looked daunting.
But Arne Slot’s malaise and Leeds’ recent resurgence in hope could collide to lead to an unexpected maelstrom. Farke was perhaps the man most under pressure a few days ago but the roles have reversed.
Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Sunderland means they are unbeaten in two Premier League games which is their best run since September. That only underlines how fractured the champions are compared to a Leeds side – and manager – who seem to be reuniting with the fan base after a few months of drift.
There’s still a sizeable gap in quality on paper, and bumps and bruises may dictate how Leeds fare against a Liverpool team that were champions just seven months ago. But there’s now hope, sweet hope, where there once was none.
