Jermaine Beckford addresses Leeds United problems with 'easy' remedy and 'bigger picture' view

Beckford’s former side have missed out on automatic promotion having taken just four points from their last six games, last weekend’s 4-0 defeat at Queens Park Rangers effectively proving the nail in the coffin. Leeds then needed a final day victory at home to Saturday’s visitors Southampton plus a Huddersfield Town win at Ipswich Town to finish in the Championship’s top two but got neither and are now heading for the play-offs.

Having had their automatic promotion destiny in their own hands, Beckford admits United’s end to the season has “dwindled” and believes that United’s defending has been the main recent issue for Farke’s side. Beckford, though, believes that individual errors are to blame, something that can ‘easily’ be rectified, especially with the ‘bigger picture’ of a full week to prepare for the play-offs. Leeds will face Norwich City in the semi-finals, the first leg taking place at Carrow Road next Sunday lunchtime.

"A disappointing end to an otherwise fantastic season,” said Beckford on Sky Sports, assessing Saturday’s defeat to Southampton. "Being able to reach that 90 point mark is a phenomenal achievement, especially when you look at the amount of players that were leaving at the beginning of the season, a slow start to the season in the first five games. I think there was only one victory.

"It's just kind of dwindled the season and Daniel Farke will be a little bit disappointed with that. But the bigger picture is, the players have got eight days I think it is, seven/eight days off before the next game, before the first leg of the playoffs and he'll be trying his hardest to make sure that every single one of them are more than focused and ready to go for that game."

Pressed on whether defensive issues were the main concern, Beckford admitted: "I think so. It's just individual errors so fortunately, it's something that can easily be rectified. You look at Leeds United's defensive record over the course of the season, they've been absolutely phenomenal, 19 clean sheets, one of the best defensive records in the Championship.

"But that being said, the last five or six games have been a little bit disappointing in terms of the amount of goals that have been conceded. That's an area that Daniel Farke is definitely going to look at improving, get the players focused on their defensive elements because offensively, on the front foot, Leeds United are fantastic. They score goals so that's not really an area that he needs to look at. That being said, being a perfectionist, he's going to want to make sure that they do score a lot more goals than they have done in the last few games especially."