After winning the Championship with 100 points, Leeds are back in the Premier League. And unlike last year’s newcomers, they will do anything not to bounce right back down.
Daniel Farke is something of a Championship specialist. The German manager won the competition for the third time this past season, guiding Leeds to the title he claimed twice previously with Norwich.
But there is a part of Farke’s story that must have haunted him even during the trophy parade, and it’s the reason why his future at Leeds was uncertain even after winning the Championship.
So far, every time Farke’s side got promoted to the Premier League, they went right back down.
The German will hope the third time really is the charm and he can guide Leeds to survival. To calm mid-table waters, even.
They got a lot of Premier League experience bringing in Sean Longstaff, and a creative forward (on a free transfer, no less) in Lukas Nmecha. Their other three key signings have one thing in common.
Defensive midfielder Anton Stach (bought from Hoffenheim) and the new centre-back pairing of Sebastian Bornauw and Jaka Bijol (brought in from Wolfsburg and Udinese respectively) are all over 190cm (6ft3in). Even the club themselves joked about that during Stach's announcement.
They will all help Leeds make the most of set pieces.
They are no strangers to success in that area already. Leeds scored 11 goals just from corners last season, joint-most in the Championship. In the Premier League, only Arsenal got to that number.
While they most likely won’t be able to replicate that on a higher level, Leeds will hope their new signings will help them keep set-piece goal contributions high.
Data from the previous season shows it is crucial to Premier League survival. The three relegated sides were among the worst in that category - Ipswich scored eight set-piece goals, Southampton seven (joint-worst with Fulham), while Leicester scored nine.
Everton, for example, climbed from uncertainty to safety after scoring 14 set-piece goals, which was a whopping 33 per cent of their total.
Leeds' recruitment team is clearly aware that a few good crosses from near the corner flag might make the difference in their season. And hopefully break Farke's dismal Premier League record.