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Go inside Leeds United’s pre-season training camp in Germany with exclusive access from the Yorkshire Evening Post. Join Graham as he takes you behind the scenes of the squad’s preparations ahead of the new season with insight you won’t see anywhere else.

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Transcript
00:00Hello from Germany where Leeds United have kicked off their preseason training camp at a secret
00:15location. We're not able to tell you where it is because the German authorities didn't want
00:20Leeds fans here. Again for the second time in a row, second summer in a row, Leeds United will
00:26play their two preseason games here behind closed doors. The first will take place on Tuesday. It'll
00:32be a game comprised of two 60-minute periods. It would be no surprise to see two completely different
00:38teams for those 60-minute periods and then they'll play again on Saturday. German lower league
00:44opposition on Tuesday. We'll be there to report and we'll be able to let you know what happened but
00:49we are working under an embargo so it'll be a little while after the game is finished but there
00:54will be no supporters which again is a massive shame for Leeds United and some missed revenue
00:59because they could have sold a lot of tickets for those games. We managed to go to training at the
01:04team's camp today to get a glimpse into what Daniel Farca has them doing. We also saw who was there
01:09and who was not there. Anton Stark was nowhere to be seen but he will be joining the squad this week.
01:17His arrival is imminent. The deal is in the closing stages. It was at the medical stage this morning
01:22when we arrived. The good thing about Leeds being where they are is that there are lots of football
01:26clubs and lots of medical facilities that they can take advantage of so they should be able to get
01:32that one over the line. Six foot four central midfielder get him involved in training this week
01:37and we might even see him involved at the weekend. Brendan Aronson's not here and that's because he was
01:43involved in the gold cup with the U.S. men's national team this summer so he got two extra weeks off
01:48and he's due to fly in on Tuesday. Matteo Joseph is also not here and it's not yet certain when he
01:57will arrive. On Saturday we asked Daniel Farca about Joseph's whereabouts. Lots and lots of
02:03transfer talk around him this summer. Real Betis obviously very very keen. They haven't been able
02:08to get a deal done for him but they're still thought to be very keen on him. Farca said that he
02:12didn't feel ready for games yet which appeared very much to come from the player himself and it
02:18contrasted quite starkly with Farca saying that Willian Yanto was also involved in that
02:22under-21s European Championship this summer but was desperate to be involved against Man United and
02:27came back really sharp. So we'll have to wait and see as to what happens with Matteo Joseph.
02:32It does feel like Leeds United have been pretty consistent all summer that he's not for sale
02:37but you just wonder if maybe a loan would be best for all parties because in that way
02:43Leeds United retain the player. If he goes away and scores a load of goals maybe in La Liga or
02:48maybe somewhere else then his value shoots up and then next summer they could be looking at a more
02:52advantageous situation or alternatively they keep the player. You know young player with a lot of
02:57potential but the pathway to first team football seems to be getting harder this summer rather than
03:04easier. So he's not here at the minute either and we'll have to wait and see when he arrives. In
03:10terms of what we saw at training it was mostly football focused. They did quite a lot of fitness
03:15work. It looked like a tough and intense session but the intensity came mostly in the form of small
03:19sided games. Lots and lots of football. Lots of passing drills before that and then a small sided
03:25game with four mini goals. A team with a numerical advantage played against a team playing an
03:31under load and the rules were different for each team. The team with a numerical advantage had to
03:35pass the ball seven times before they could shoot and the team with the playing an under load they had
03:40to win the ball back and could shoot instantly. But what stands out in pre-season training is just how
03:47unbelievably competitive it is. Just how fiercely they can test everything even if it's just a small
03:52sided game. The disputes over handball decisions, the disputes over the ball going out, the claims for
03:58fouls. When they moved to the final set of several four minute small sided games there was one moment
04:06where Jadon Bogle not made largely Ramazani to go clean through and goal and Ramazani simply grabbed
04:11him by the bib and hauled him to the turf and then kicked the ball at him in frustration. They do not like
04:16to lose at anything. Also very noticeable how vocal Ethan Ampadu is. We knew that from last season and Joe
04:23Rodon as well and just how much they let the coaches know about it when they disagree about a decision.
04:28But several players stood out as looking particularly sharp. Bogle I thought carried on exactly where he
04:34left off against Manchester United. I thought he looked really, really sharp. Getting forward,
04:39attacking, finishing, beating players. Jacob Bial showed a really nice knack for finishing. Used his body
04:47shape to deceive Elan Mellier. And Mellier came up with some unbelievable saves. He made one incredible
04:53save from Largie Ramazani. Carl Darlow made a really spectacular one from Dan James. Dan James again
04:59competing in the air surprisingly well. Sean Longstaff getting forward and showing an eye for goal.
05:05That's something that will be key for Leeds as they put together the last bits of recruitment is where the
05:09goals are going to come from. Because you can see from the team that they're putting together that
05:14they're going to be difficult to play against, difficult to beat. They're going to be a little
05:17bit more compact, I would say, than they were last season. They certainly won't play with reckless
05:22abandon in the Premier League, but they are going to have to convert chances when they get them.
05:27To that end, they still think that Igor Paxao is a possibility. The Feyenoord winger, Brazilian,
05:33there are obvious shades and comparisons to be drawn with a former Leeds United player. And Leeds have
05:39been pushing the Rafinha story in some of their recruitment work this summer to say,
05:44look at this player, came to us, spent two years, went on to great things. Leeds played a big part in
05:51his development. They still think that there's a deal to be made with Feyenoord, that it's not a
05:56foregone conclusion with Marseille, despite those reports that appear to emanate from the French club
06:01at the weekend. So it's one to wait and see. But Leeds certainly feel that he's a player worth keeping the
06:05door open for, for now at least. And we're waiting on more updates on that one. There's the goalkeeper
06:12situation to resolve as well, which has taken a little bit longer. But club sources say that Daniel
06:17Farke is more content to have the goalkeeper arrive later than some of the other players whose tactical
06:23adaptation would be seen as more vital, more pertinent than a goalkeeper. And then, you know,
06:29you've got the left winger, you've got a striker, they still think that they might be able to do some
06:32business with Fulham for Muniz. But that may well depend on Fulham getting a replacement in.
06:38Fulham are known to be in the market for a striker. The plan for the rest of the week is this game
06:44tomorrow against German lower tier opposition, 260 minutes. Then they'll continue to train at their
06:50base. And then on Saturday, they'll play the final game of this trip. Then back home to Elland Road for
06:55Villarreal and then off to Dublin for what will be a spectacular weekend when they take on AC Milan.
07:01The YP will be at all of those games. We'll have all the usual player ratings, match reports.
07:06We'll be speaking to Daniel Farke, asking him for the latest on various situations, both incoming
07:11and outgoing. And at some point this week, we're very likely to see a giant midfielder pull on a Leeds
07:17United Strip.

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