Leeds United: Daniel Farke confirms big double player boost ahead of Sheffield United | OneFootball

The Whites could have two important players back from injury on Friday night.

Daniel Farke has revealed that Dan James and Manor Solomon's have been in training for most of the week ahead of Leeds United's match against Sheffield United on Friday night.

The two Yorkshire sides haven't faced one another since April 2021. That was when they were both in the Premier League; now they are battling to get back to the top flight.

The Whites and the Blades suffered frustrating seasons for very opposite reasons last time out. Leeds came agonisingly close to achieving promotion, while the Blades endured one of the worst seasons in Premier League history.

So, after over three years away from each other, they will return to meet again on Friday night. Leeds have already toppled one of the Steel City sides this season, beating Wednesday 2-0 at Hillsborough in August. Doing so again will further boost their chances of winning promotion this time around.

In order to do that, they will need a strong performance to get past a formidable Chris Wilder team; a performance that should be aided by the potential return of two key players.

Dan James and Manor Solomon returning to full fitness

The Whites' boss has revealed that both wingers have made good progress with recovering from their respective injures over the international break.

In his press conference on Wednesday, Farke complained about the timing of the game, saying that a match of this calibre shouldn't be on a Friday night after an international break, as it doesn't allow either team enough time to fully prepare.

Even with his reservations about the timing of the contest, he is pleased about how well James and Solomon's fitness is coming along.

"Good news with Daniel James and Manor Solomon," said Farke, via the Yorkshire Evening Post. "They are back in team training since late last week. They've trained more or less every day this week. Obviously James was out a bit longer so it's a bit easier for Manor, just out for three weeks, but we desperately need them and it's good to have them back."

Leeds are also close to welcoming back defender Max Wober. He has been hit with injury issues since returning from a loan spell with Borussia Mönchengladbach in the summer. He had an operation on his knee prior to the international break that was supposed to keep him out for six weeks, as per YEP.

"Also some good news with Max Wober. He's a bit ahead of schedule with his rehab programme. Right now we have hope he could be involved at some point before the next international break but he's obviously out for the weekend."

Leeds need to add more bodies before the January window

As well as the injuries that James, Solomon and Wober have all suffered, Leeds have another two key players missing in Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev. Their knee injuries are expected to keep them out until after the new year.

Moves have been attempted to try and address the issue, with former Nottingham Forest midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate being reported as a player that Leeds had agreed a deal with, only for the 34-year-old Senegalese international to then fail his medical with the club.

Farke also said at the pre-Sheffield United press conference that he was "carefully optimistic" about Leeds' chances of signing a free agent in the coming days and weeks. They certainly need to do so, otherwise they risk putting quite a strain on their current crop.