Daniel Farke’s remarkable Lukas Nmehca praise as Calvert-Lewin given Leeds United goals message
He named one of these summer signings as one of the best strikers in his country
Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter
09:31, 23 Nov 2025
Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha have three goals between them in nearly 900 minutes(Image: Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
Daniel Farke believes Lukas Nmecha is one of the best strikers from Germany but that the Leeds United striker needs to find confidence in his body again after several seasons of injury.
Nmecha is now the club’s highest-scoring centre-forward, following his second strike of the season in the 3-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest before the international break, despite playing nearly 350 fewer minutes than main choice Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
It is likely that summer signing Nmecha returns to the bench against Aston Villa today with Calvert-Lewin having now shaken off his adductor injury that forced him to start as a substitute.
Nevertheless, Farke has high praise for Nmecha. “Lukas, his quality was never in doubt, even in the last years,” he said. “He was very, very unlucky to have many injuries in Germany.
“He already has [seven] caps for the German national team and you don’t win those in the lottery. He is one of the best strikers that we have in Germany, we know this.
“For him, the main topic is that he stays fit and feels comfortable in his body and finds confidence back. He’s been training in recent weeks without any problem. You can see he’s grown in training and in the games.”
Calvert-Lewin has meanwhile failed to score for two months, but Farke is keen not to single him out. He explained: “For an offensive player it is always good for the confidence and mood to deliver end products and score goals. It’s quite important.
“But I don’t want to create an individual battle there and criticise too much. For me, it’s about how many goals we score as a team.”
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