Leeds lost talent… and got better. All praise to Daniel Farke.

Because the English football media is certifiably insane, Daniel Farke is already the subject of rumors that he is going to be sacked by Leeds for the professional crime of – checks notes – getting Leeds promoted.

Look, I know this is a new blog and we haven’t built up credibility with y’all, but… this is simply stupid shit. I don’t want to go as far as saying what Farke has done here is a miracle, but it’s not far from the truth.

Yes, he couldn’t keep Norwich up when they got promoted, but that’s because the team didn’t invest in players who were good enough for the Premier League. It’s as simple as that. Also, it was a different team. If you didn’t think he was a good manager, you never should have hired him in the first place. What matter is what Farke has done here.

And at Elland Road, he’s been amazing.

OK, he didn’t get promoted in year one. Leeds earned 90 points, which is usually the line for promotion. But look, it even took Bielsa two seasons to get promoted out of the Championship. It’s a hard league, y’all. And well, shit happens.

But what is remarkable is how well Farke did in Year Two, when the roster didn’t get any better. In fact, it got demonstrably worse.

We can talk about Profit and Sustainability Regulations later, but the club was in the crosshairs this offseason, and they sold off talent aggressively. Maybe too aggressively, but it is what it is.

Still, Leeds sold off €162.9 million of talent last season. Most notably, they sold off their two leading scorers, Crysencio Summerville (19 goals) and Georgino Rutter (16 assists). They also sold off the team’s best young player in Archie Gray and just for good measure, an effective midfielder, Glen Kamara. The team didn’t know it either, but Patrick Bamford’s production was about to completely collapse. He went from 8 goals to 0.

So how would the team respond to such a dramatic loss of talent and production? Who would they bring in?

Not quite nobody, but close to it. Leeds concentrated its budget on improving the defense, which was a good idea. The team’s goals allowed dropped from 43 last season to 29 this season, with two games to go.

But with a limited budget for incoming transfers, Leeds spent its money on two defenders, Joe Rodon and Jayden Bogle, plus a defensive midfielder Ao Tanaka. They also did make a minor splash on Largie Ramazani, who started just 7 games and scored 6 goals.

Leeds did make an effort on the loan transfer market to fill the void, bringing in Joe Rothwell and Manor Solomon. Rothwell essentially replaced Kamara’s production, but the big move was Solomon, who has contributed 9 goals and 11 assists.

Still, Leeds lost 33 goals and 26 assists from Summerville, Rutter, and Bamford. Solomon can’t replace that on his own. Piroe, James, and Gnoto contributed 34 goals and 12 assists last season combined, and put in 39 goals and 20 assists this year. So, it makes up for a little, but not a bunch. Bringing Aaronson back into the fold essentially makes up for the collapse of Bamford’s form, giving the club 9 goals and 2 assists.

However, Leeds is on pace to score MORE goals this season than last. 81 goals last season to 93 this year, with one left to play. So how did they do it? Because Farke has coaxed more scoring and more production out of the assets he already had.

Oh, and those moves to improve the defense worked out as well. Leeds reduced its goals against from 43 to 29, which would be a Championship record if it weren’t for Burnley’s insane defensive season. Still, Leeds has a goal differential of 64! SIXTY-FOUR.

Liverpool is +48. Barcelona is +57. Bayern Munich is +61. +64 is elite levels of domination. We’ve been lucky to watch this team and again, Farke did it by shedding €130 million in player value. It beggars belief.

The front office was forced to sell, more than it probably wanted to, and they could only bring in a few spare parts… and Farke has somehow transformed that into a better team than the one he had before…. much better. This year’s squad is not as talented, but it is a better team that has truly dominated its league. And that is a tribute to Farke.

It’s now up to him to bring in enough talent to win in the Premier League. Because this roster was built to win the Championship, and that won’t be enough next season. But he’s earned the right to do it.