Leeds United were held to a 1-1 draw by Villarreal at Elland Road in their penultimate pre-season friendly on Saturday.
Joel Piroe grabbed a well-taken equaliser in the second half after the visitors had gone ahead through Etta Eyong.
A lively crowd of 35,273 turned out to watch Daniel Farke‘s side take on last season’s fifth-placed team in La Liga.
There were encouraging signs from some of the new arrivals, particularly in midfield, but questions remain elsewhere.
Concerns over the striker situation persist, while Jack Harrison’s continued absence only adds to the uncertainty.
AADAM PATEL was at Elland Road for Mail Sport and has noted down five things we learned from Saturday’s friendly.
Joel Piroe (left) scored a second-half equaliser as Leeds United held Villarreal to a 1-1 draw
Flexible Farke shows tactical pragmatism
Daniel Farke has spoken about flexibility when it comes to formations during pre-season.
The early signs are that when Leeds come up against weaker opposition, they will set up in a 4-2-3-1 as they did during most of their Championship games, where they enjoyed more of the ball.
But here against Villarreal, who finished 5th in La Liga last season, they set up in a 4-3-3 base formation.
Leeds did the same against Man Utd in their friendly in Stockholm and in Ethan Ampadu, Anton Stach and Sean Longstaff, they began with a solid midfield three against Villarreal.
In particular, the two new signings showed their quality and more than held their own against the Spanish side while Ilia Gruev and Ao Tanaka, who came off the bench, showed why they will have important roles to play this season.
‘This is the quality we will face very often at Premier League level and we showed that we are capable,’ said Farke. ‘It’s important to be flexible. We had periods where we controlled the midfield really good.’
Daniel Farke set up his team in a 4-3-3 formation against a team that finished fifth in La Liga
Harrison saga drags on
Going into this friendly, one of the key questions was how the Leeds fans would react to the return of Jack Harrison at Elland Road.
That question was put to bed when Harrison wasn’t named in the squad after ‘struggling with a few adductor problems’.
Harrison was booed by his own fans in Stockholm after twice deciding in recent years that he didn’t want to be at Leeds and still has Everton — where he was on loan for the last two seasons — in his Instagram bio.
The situation remains complicated and it is hardly ideal for Leeds to have one of their highest earners in a state of limbo. The failed pursuit of Igor Paixao has only added to the tensions. Publicly, Farke is implying that Harrison will be a part of his plans.
‘We hope it’s just a few days that he’ll miss and I hope to have him available for the Milan game,’ the Leeds boss said. If he is, the reaction in front of 50,000 Leeds fans in Dublin will certainly be interesting.
A lively crowd of 35,273 supporters watched Saturday’s pre-season friendly at Elland Road
Striker search grows more urgent
With each passing day, the need for a top-quality striker becomes clearer.
Lukas Nmecha had two good opportunities in the first half but failed to take them and though Joel Piroe showed good instincts to equalise for Leeds, he is unproven at the top level.
With Patrick Bamford and Mateo Joseph out of favour, Leeds cannot afford to start the season with just Nmecha, Piroe and Harry Gray as their centre forward options.
‘You could tell that in the offense we need a bit more quality,’ said Farke. ‘In all offensive positions, we need reinforcements to be ready for the Premier League. It’s not about the numbers. It’s about the quality of the players,’ he added.
Leeds made a bid of £26million for Rodrigo Muniz in June that was rejected by Fulham, who value the Brazilian at around £40m.
Leeds are keeping their options open but in a congested market where top strikers are hard to come by, they need to make a decision imminently.
And judging by Farke’s words, those decisions will indeed come quickly.
Striker Lukas Nmecha was unable to score despite having two good chances in front of goal
Darlow impresses but keeper exit looms
It was hardly ideal that Leeds’ new keeper Lucas Perri was ruled out with a niggle but Karl Darlow made two great saves in the first-half to show why he will be an able deputy.
Darlow was replaced by Illan Meslier at half-time, who made a good save but could do nothing to keep out Etta Eyong on the rebound.
With Alex Cairns as the fourth keeper on the books, one keeper is surely on his way out and that looks set to be Meslier but Leeds are yet to receive an offer for the Frenchman.
The other two are classed as homegrown players and certainly more used to the role as a back-up.
As for Meslier, it would be an almighty surprise if he plays again at Elland Road this season.
But Farke stopped short of confirming whether Perri will make his debut next Saturday when Leeds take on Milan in their last pre-season friendly in Dublin.
The Brazilian is yet to train with the team and has spent the last few days doing goalkeeper-specific training but he is expected to join full training over the coming days.
Leeds goalkeeper Karl Darlow looked sharp during the first 45 minutes as he made two saves
Schmidt struggles in defensive audition
With Jayden Bogle absent due to ‘a problem with his hip flexor’ and a doubt for the first game of the season against Everton, Isaac Schmidt was given the opportunity at right-back but this was a performance that highlighted how important Bogle will be for Leeds in the Premier League.
Schmidt struggled against Yeremy Pino, who has played 15 times for Spain and though he did get into some dangerous positions going forward, the 25-year-old lacked the threat that Bogle possesses.
Defensively, he was too easy to get past and Villarreal’s goal came from his side. This was a timely reminder that Leeds could do with another back-up full back alongside Sam Byram.
In Bogle and Gabriel Gudmundsson, they have solid starting options but Farke admitted he was ‘a bit concerned’ and was ‘unsure’ whether Bogle will be available for Milan. At this moment, any kind of injury or suspension leaves Leeds exposed down the flanks.