Farke proud of Leeds despite Arsenal defeat

Daniel Farke said he was proud of Leeds United’s performance at Arsenal despite the disappointment of returning from the Emirates without a point.

Leeds led through James Justin before Riccardo Calafiori and Bruno Guimaraes turned the game around for a 2-1 Arsenal win. Farke’s reaction focused on the quality of the display and the small details that separated the teams.

Image credit: Daniel Farke on the touchline at the Emirates, 10 October 2026. Photo: Leeds United official website

Farke proud of Leeds at Arsenal

In the club’s official post-match interview, Farke described mixed emotions. He was disappointed for his players, while pleased with how they had competed away to the Premier League champions.

“I’m heartbroken and gutted for my players, they deserved to travel back with points today,” he said. “On the other hand I’m very proud of a top away performance.”

Leeds reached half-time at 0-0. Farke said the opening half was played at a good level and revealed the message he gave his team during the interval.

Farke’s half-time message

“I told them at half-time if we keep going we’ll win this game,” he said. Leeds subsequently went ahead when Justin finished from Gabriel Gudmundsson’s cross.

For Farke, that lead was deserved. His team then looked for another goal, but Arsenal equalised and used the momentum to score again.

He identified details rather than a single major error. Leeds may have shifted across too far and reacted too late to a run for the equaliser. He also felt they could have been tidier in possession after taking the lead.

Those observations sit alongside his praise. Farke did not present the defeat as an acceptable target, but said he could not ask for much more from the overall performance.

Leeds take positives, not points

Farke also acknowledged Arsenal’s quality and the strength of the players they could introduce. Guimaraes came off the bench to score the winner.

“We could have been a bit tidier and not given the ball away so easily,” he said. “There was not a big mistake, just a few details not spot on for the goal.”

Our Arsenal 2-1 Leeds match report covers the scoring sequence. This reaction adds the manager’s assessment of how Leeds played, rather than changing the result.

The points stayed with Arsenal. Farke’s message was that Leeds can still use the performance as evidence of progress, while working on the details that stopped them protecting their lead.