£12m Leeds United ace will be banging on Daniel Farke’s door after promising cameo v Sunderland: View

There wasn’t much for the travelling Leeds United supporters to get excited about yesterday as their side played out a 0-0 draw with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

We aren’t the most glamorous watch at times. But Daniel Farke has assembled a team that is very hard to beat. The German deserves immense credit for this.

Both Brenden Aaronson and Harry Wilson struggled to make an impact on the game. The pair were hooked with around 25 minutes to play by Farke. This is despite their replacements, Noah Okafor and Anton Stach, not being at full fitness.

However, there was one United player who did make an impact whilst they were on the pitch. They will surely be banging on Farke’s door for some more minutes moving forward.

Sean Longstaff looked lively in his cameo against Sunderland

At one stage, Sean Longstaff was regarded as one of the best signings in the Premier League when we secured his services from Newcastle for £12million back in the summer of 2025.

However, after falling out of the team at the end of last November due to injury, Longstaff has not started a Premier League game since.

But with it being 11 months or so since he started a Premier League fixture, the Englishman has positioned himself in a good place to perhaps break this streak.

Longstaff was only subbed on in the 89th minute. Despite this, he looked the most likely of any Leeds player to find a breakthrough at the Stadium of Light.

His left-footed effort from outside the box forced a good save out of Robin Roefs. The ‘keeper was forced to be at full extension to save his effort.

A ball also fell to Longstaff in the 94th minute, but his strike from close range was unfortunately blocked.

Whilst Farke may not throw him back into the team from the off in our next game away at Bournemouth, he certainly needs to consider giving the midfielder more game time. Especially if our troubles in the final third persist.

How Leeds could line up with Sean Longstaff

Against Bournemouth, we could still line up in a 3-5-2 with Longstaff in the team.

The 28-year-old would partner Ethan Ampadu and Ao Tanaka in midfield. Okafor could start on the left wing, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin leading the line.

This role would give Longstaff the freedom to arrive late in the box and provide that much-needed goal threat from midfield.

Stach has been favoured in the midfield ahead of Longstaff this season. Although at this point, it’s hard to justify the German’s inclusion in the team ahead of Longstaff.

Stach has struggled to find the same form that he displayed for us so often last season. Despite this, he was subbed on ahead of Longstaff against Sunderland. But Stach was unable to change the game in the 24 minutes he was on the pitch.

For Farke to sub on a not fully fit Stach ahead of Longstaff shows just how far the Englishman has fallen in the pecking order at Leeds. Farke certainly needs to reconsider this stance.

I’m not necessarily saying we drop Stach against Bournemouth if he’s fit. But he certainly couldn’t have any complaints if he was benched.

However, if he continues to be sloppy on the ball and fails to impact the game, Longstaff needs to be brought on much sooner.

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