Leeds United boss Daniel Farke was left delighted with every aspect of his side’s performance as they boosted their survival hopes with a shock 3-1 victory over Chelsea.
In front of a boisterous home crowd at Elland Road, Farke’s men made a fast start through Jaka Bijol before rounding off one of their best halves of the season by doubling their advantage as Ao Tanaka added another to become the first Asian player to score for the Whites in the top flight.
Despite Pedro Neto pulling a goal back for a misfiring Chelsea team, a mistake from Tosin Adarabioyo allowed striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin to clinch the points for Leeds and end a four-match losing run.
Farke, who has been under some pressure, did not hide his glee after seeing his team move three points clear of the bottom three.
He told BBC Sport: “For nights like this, we were so desperate to bring the club back to the top level.
“Elland Road was back to its best.
“A great shift from my lads, a great performance against one of the best sides in the world.
“The key today was to return to our best behaviours in terms of defending. In our last games we didn’t give much away.
“For us it was crucial to reduce Chelsea to little, they didn’t have one proper chance in the first half.”
Watching the people get lairy! pic.twitter.com/bLEcg5ImUP
— Leeds United (@LUFC) December 3, 2025
Leeds had just 28.6% possession, their lowest amount in a victory since seeing off Reading in December 2016, but Farke believes a more pragmatic way of playing proved crucial in limiting the threat of Enzo Maresca’s men.
He said: “Of course, they had more possession, I would have liked to have controlled the game a bit more, but overall [it was] a deserved win.
“As a promoted side you have to concentrate to take the strength of the opponent away, mirror the opponent, play more pragmatically.
“I want to play more direct like we used to, but if you are promoted you have to be flexible and adapt to the opponent.
“I’m not married to a formation but married to principles.”
Farke switched to a back three, with Leeds generating 2.82 expected goals and having 17 shots, although Calvert-Lewin’s effort alone accounted for a whopping 0.99 xG.
He now hopes his side can continue to be flexible on the pitch in the coming games, beginning with the visit of reigning champions Liverpool on Saturday.
“I want to see the same principles on the pitch,” he said. “It’s important for the future for us to be unpredictable and adapt to different scenarios.”
