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Regardless of opinion, Daniel Farke has turned into a one-man buffer zone, shielding team members and executives from growing fan frustration at Elland Road.

Pivotal Fixture List Ahead

The Yorkshire club travels to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday with the manager fully conscious that losing against his respected colleague the Catalan coach will only heighten speculation that the former Celtic manager could soon take over his position.

Although uncertain as to whether the experienced manager, a free agent after a dramatic divorce from Celtic in October, would truly desire the job, five defeats in the past six top-flight matches have provoked awkward questions about the manager's position.

Following the visit to the Etihad Stadium followed by fixtures with Chelsea and Anfield outfit on midweek and Saturday respectively, a critical stretch approaches for the German who, only a few months ago, secured promotion from the Championship.

Publicly Unfazed

“I quite like it that the external criticism is on the manager and not the squad,” Farke stated on recently. “It's my duty to be a figurehead who remains composed and avoids thinking about his personal future. It’s about how the team can stay in the top flight permanently.

“I’ll be honest, it's quite unpleasant at the moment; we are receiving a lot of criticism. Yet, I am not shying away. I understood of how intense this team is from the outset here. If you can’t handle the scrutiny avoid becoming boss of Leeds United. I never expected this campaign to be an easy ride.”

Missteps and Incorrect Anger

No coach is perfect and, during the team's decline to 18th, the German has certainly made mistakes. However, the angry spectator who tried to approach him in the coaching zone during the recent unsuccessful result by the Midlands club was arguably blaming the incorrect person.

Without the quick action from stewards stopped what could have been an serious altercation, the general criticism of “You're clueless” directed towards the coach could, alternatively, have equally been aimed at the club’s chair, the executive, Adam Underwood and the head of recruitment.

Spending and Missed Opportunities

After all, although around £100m was spent on a host of arrivals in the transfer window, the manager's repeated pre-season cautions about the need to add more “goal threat” went overlooked. On the other hand, a short distance away, a recently elevated Sunderland squad was refreshed by a very shrewd large outlay that has left the French coach fully able to showcase his tactical skill.

Would the situation vary for Farke had two key targets not selected the other side rather than the Yorkshire outfit, or if the Yorkshire club’s owner, the US consortium, had been in a stronger position to comply with the Premier League’s spending rules? The horizon would certainly have been brighter had the forward not underachieved so clearly. On the underwhelming evidence to date, Leeds might have been more successful sticking with their previous forward.

Injuries and Determination

The manager did, however, provided with two decent central players in £17m Anton Stach and £12m Sean Longstaff last window but, concerningly, the two will be absent at the City's ground. The German is under head injury guidelines, while a leg issue will sideline his teammate for a significant period. Not that, the man in charge is contemplating surrender.

“Metrics prove we’re in the top two with the champions in terms of athletic performance and stamina this term,” says Farke. “I observe how cohesive the team are. The lacking element is the decisive touch in attack and defense. It's crucial to refine minor points.

“Yet, we were aware such a scenario was possible. Securing survival would be a great success. In the past two years each ascending club went immediately relegated but I am optimistic we can manage in our target”. The objective is the survival benchmark and, with eleven points gained from a dozen fixtures of the campaign so far, the team have not, in fairness, strayed significantly from the plan.

Required Adjustments

• Stopping any additional decline will undoubtedly necessitate the manager finding his attackers' scoring form and addressing the often exposed left defense of the defensive unit.
• Additionally maybe substituting the increasingly error-prone Lucas Perri with the backup keeper in goal and, possibly, identifying an better option to the much vilified the attacking midfielder on the right wing of his attack.
• The American’s phenomenal workrate and committed covering helps fortify Leeds in defense but, offensively, he has failed to impress.

Addressing Criticism

However, the boss is satisfied by the fan anger to the player. “Is it really how we should treat another human being in our society?” Farke questions. “We gain satisfaction if we can direct our frustration on another human being; I disapprove.”

Plenty of admirable qualities about Farke – the City boss says he has “an incredible opinion of Daniel” – but the 49-year-old is increasingly seeming fatigued. Very soon, the club's board must choose whether to stand by him, or dismiss him.