Premier League star admits fury over Daniel Farke sacking as finger of blame pointed

Daily Mirror

02-05-2025

Ex- Norwich City defender Max Aarons labelled Daniel Farke's 2021 dismissal from Carrow Road as "horrendous", identifying it as the catalyst for the Canaries' downfall. Farke has since steered Leeds United to the Premier League in his second season at the helm.
Their triumphant return to the top tier was sealed following a resounding 6-0 victory over Stoke City at Elland Road. However, rumours of Farke's potential sacking began to circulate shortly after their automatic promotion was confirmed.
Despite an impressive season, his Premier League track record reveals two seasons and two relegations, both occurring during his tenure at Norwich. While he enjoys the support of Leeds' fans, it remains uncertain whether the club's owners, 49ers Enterprises, will continue to back him.
Aarons played under Farke during both relegation seasons, before eventually leaving East Anglia to join Bournemouth in 2023. He insisted that the issues at Norwich, who have since dropped to 14th in the Championship table and recently dismissed manager Johannes Hoff Thorup, were not entirely Farke's fault.
Aarons, who is currently on loan at Valencia from the Cherries, shared his thoughts on the Talk Norwich City podcast. He said: "I could sense it in the whole group.
"It wasn't like he'd been sacked and everyone felt like, 'Right, we can really kick on here.' Obviously we felt we'd give it a good go until the end of the season, but everyone in that group had an amazing relationship with him.
"Everyone knew the style of play, everyone knew that he improved everyone. So then to have that taken away, I feel like it was a horrendous decision. He was the person who had done so much for us as a group."
Farke's tenure at Norwich came to an abrupt end in November 2021 following a challenging start to their Premier League season, with just one win in the first 11 games. The team faced a tough start to the campaign early on with clashes against Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal, Leicester City, Watford, and Everton.
The irony of Farke's sacking lay in its timing, as he was let go right after Norwich clinched their first win of the season, a 2-1 triumph over Brentford in west London. Dean Smith stepped into his shoes and after winning his first match, only managed three more wins in his next 26 Premier League matches.
Reflecting on the managerial change, Aarons said: "We all knew our roles. We all knew the way of playing, and we all believed in it. We'd just beaten Brentford and we did have horrendous fixtures at the start of that season. He wasn't backed.
"I don't feel like us as players or the fans were backed going into that season. It was frustrating, and that was the point where it kind of switched a little bit."
A win against Plymouth Argyle on Saturday will see Leeds hit the 100-point mark and win the Championship. After the match at Home Park, all eyes will be on whether Farke will be kept on for the upcoming Premier League season.
The Daily Express has named a few potential replacements for his role, including Jose Mourinho, Michael Carrick, Thiago Motta, Bodo/Glimt's manager Kjetil Knutsen, and Ange Postecoglou, provided the latter is let go by Tottenham Hotspur.