How Leeds star has already become one of the best in the Premier League

If Daniel Farke could travel back in time to the start of last season, then he would do so to tell his old self to change formation from the get-go. His best Marty McFly impression would have Leeds United in an even better place than they currently find themselves and any idea of the sack would have been non-existent last season.

As it is, however, the Leeds boss is not the proud owner of a DeLorean Time Machine and has instead been forced to wait until the start of the current campaign to make a flying start.

Reuters/Paul Childs

The Whites have been excellent, with the highlight being their 4-1 thrashing of Newcastle United, and as much as Farke’s system should take a lot of the credit, the recruitment deserves plenty of praise too.

Leeds had one of the best summers in the Premier League

Second-season syndrome can strike just about anybody and Leeds were prime candidates to be infected over the summer.

There are remedies to the disease that the likes of Brentford have followed so well in the past, however, and it all comes down to smart recruitment.

Get the concoction wrong, and the consequences will be fatal – just ask classic victims like Huddersfield Town. Get it right, though, and a permanent place in the top flight awaits.

Five games into the current campaign, it looks like the 49ers have got it spot on. They invested heavily at Elland Road in the summer, welcoming several impressive names and have seen the fruits of their labour continue to grow ever since.

Tarik Muharemovic immediately stands out from the summer just gone, but it’s also worth noting how successful Leeds’ arrivals were a year prior. Dominic Calvert-Lewin has gone down as a true bargain, joining as a free agent, and Noah Okafor has also more than proved his worth.

Alas, out of all the impressive names to arrive over the last 12 months, one man stands out above the rest as Farke’s best recruit.

Leeds signing now among the best in the Premier League

When clubs like Leeds spend big, they absolutely must get it right. There is no inflated commercial revenue at Elland Road.

No 115 attempts, to put a number on it, at refreshing a squad in the hope of achieving historic success to cloud reality. And that’s why some eyebrows were raised when the 49ers did spend big in the summer.

It was a sign of intent, especially given that the American owners also broke the club’s transfer record. By the time the window slammed shut, the Whites had spent £86.8m.

REUTERS/David Klein

Sometimes signings instantly make perfect sense, though, and James Trafford always looked like becoming one of those rare cases. For £40m, Leeds solved their goalkeeper crisis and have not looked back ever since.

As ever, there were still some critics. Fan pundit and Chelsea supporter Rory Jennings branded Trafford a “£15m goalkeeper” and claimed that Leeds had massively overpaid. Journalist Ade Oladipo, meanwhile, claimed that the goalkeeper was a “reserve” player.

Now, months on, £40m is beginning to look like a bargain and Trafford notably started as England’s No.1 in their recent Nations League game against Spain. If that’s what reserve players are doing these days, then life as a starter must be true luxury.

Statistically speaking, Trafford has been one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League since completing a move to Yorkshire.

No goalkeeper has made more saves than his 20, and when considering the fact that he’s also conceded just three goals and maintained a save percentage of 87%, it’s clear that Leeds have solved their biggest problem.

Just months after some branded Trafford a mere “reserve” player, he is making a serious case for signing of the summer.