Farke believes Leeds have right mentality

DANIEL Farke says “a few days” was all it took for his Leeds United players to persuade him he could trust them when times were tough.

And he has pointed to their record against the best teams in the division as another reason why he is not panicked by a difficult end to the regular season.

The Whites will have to treat the Championship play-offs – which for them means a two-legged semi-final against Farke’s former club Norwich City on Sunday (away) and Thursday (home) – as a reset after a disappointing run of form.

Since March's international break, Leeds have won two of eight matches, losing four of the last six.

But Farke, pictured, says he has known for a long time he has a group of players he can rely on.

"I just put my faith in them because I know they're capable of it," he said. "It doesn't always work out in a perfect way.

"(But) I was convinced of the character a few days after we arrived and at least after the transfer window in August was closed.

"I got used to the character of every player and saw what they could do on the pitch and I was believing in them but I knew we had many young players in key positions and we had to work with them, first of all on their tactical behaviour, on their football skills, but also to develop their personalities.

"Thank God we've got two or three more experienced lads in the dressing room and they help a lot but once you work with such a young side you have to bring a winning mentality and work on the mental side, the soft skills, to develop the personality.

"You never have a guarantee of how quickly you can develop it and this is a work in progress. We're not the finished product but the longer the season goes, the more trust I have in them. "It's a good sign when you are in spotlight games with big pressure and you deliver. We've won both games against Ipswich, both games against Leicester, we were under big pressure at Middlesbrough after three disappointing and unlucky results and were able to be there when it really counts (with a 4-3 away win). This is normally a sign of winning mentality.

"We're not like Real Madrid who always deliver but we are on a good path."