Forget Calvert-Lewin: Anton Stach Has Been Even More Important for Farke

· GiveMeSport

Calvert-Lewin may score the goals that get the headlines at Leeds but Stach is the all-action engine of this outfit under Farke.

Daniel Farke looks to have well and truly fulfilled his brief by cementing Leeds United as an established Premier League outfit once more, off the back of some inspired moves in the transfer market since promotion.

The German secured another Elland Road draw against old rivals Man United on Sunday afternoon as Dominic Calvert-Lewin netted his fourth league goal of the campaign to cancel out Bryan Mbeumo's opener.

The result leaves Leeds seventh in the table on 10 points, with just one defeat so far this term, following on from a relatively comfortable 14th-placed finish on their return to the top flight last season.

Calvert-Lewin, something of a last-minute addition on a free transfer after his departure from Everton two summers ago, also scored the goals to spearhead the Whites' Premier League consolidation and after arriving for nothing his return on investment can hardly be questioned.

But in Farke 's set-up the millions shelled out to secure another key addition during the same window prior to last season may actually be proving even better value for money.

Anton Stach arrived at Elland Road from Hoffenheim for an initial £17.4 million in July 2025 despite the club already bringing in Sean Longstaff from Newcastle to flesh out the central midfield.

The Englishman himself represented an investment of more than £12m, but his German counterpart has so far proven to be an even more important signing in West Yorkshire.

Stach, 27, has started 100 percent of the Premier League games for Farke so far this term, after making 27 in the top flight in the previous campaign with two more off the bench. According to Transfermarkt's numbers, he played 2,378 minutes despite his season being disrupted by multiple short-term lay-offs through injury.

His all-action displays in the middle of the park for Leeds complement the contributions of teammates such as Ethan Ampadu and Ao Tanaka, and provide a huge boost to a side that flourishes when it shows energy out wide and an intensity in central areas that makes any opponent uncomfortable, with shades of the Marcelo Bielsa-era side which will live long in the memory.

Even in defeat last weekend, the much-heralded Arsenal midfield was struggling to live with Stach and company until James Trafford's goalkeeping error let the champions back into the game.

In an era where the true box-to-box midfielder has increasingly been replaced by specialists focusing on either defensive or attacking areas, Stach's numbers show he is excelling in both directions. Statistics compiled by FootMob show that the German is surpassing 90 percent or more of players in his position in varied areas such as shots and chances created, but also defensive contributions and aerial duels won.

His one league goal from central midfield is better than 83 percent of his counterparts at the position, a year after he netted five and assisted three more in the league.

Combining his industry with quantifiable interventions in attack and defence makes the eight figures shelled out by 49ers Enterprises well worth the investment.

And that industry is a vital element to the Farke design, as FootballFanCast indicate via stats to show Leeds came into the weekend second in the league for pressing sequences with 76, with Stach capable of contributing heavily in that structure given he was sixth among Premier League players in terms of distance covered per 90 minutes at 11.9 km.

Given only struggling Tottenham are ahead of Leeds in pressing, it is clear that the effectiveness of the press, and by extension those tasked with implementing it, is key, and judging by the numbers it isn't hard to imagine Roberto De Zerbi might wish he had Stach in North London with him.

FootMob's statistics show that Stach sits ahead of at least 87 per-cent of comparable midfielders in categories such as sprints, duels won, tackles, interceptions, and blocked shots.

And yet there are also areas where he is outstripping his contemporaries going forward, as he leads 71 percent of them in expected assists, and at least 84 percent in shots on target, chances created, and successful crosses, suggesting a big part of Calvert-Lewin's excellent output is itself a result of Stach's contributions behind him.

The season is young, Stach has shown he is not immune to injury, and there are areas where he is weaker, so the risk is always there that his performances will slip back.

As things stand, however, Farke and his bosses have to be delighted with their work in the transfer market when it comes to securing one of their top performers from the Bundesliga 15 months ago.

Read the original

People in this story

Related