Inside Leeds' pre-season camp in Germany: Why Daniel Farke wanted Portugal's 2024 Euros base and the strategy behind signing 'giants'

The morning after Leeds United's friendly against SC Verl and Mail Sport are cycling around the village of Marienfeld. From the Eiscafe (ice-cream parlour) to the golf club or the Combi supermarket, the Leeds squad have been regulars over the past week.

The players are enjoying a morning bike ride on their recovery day. Whizzing across is Wilfried Gnonto, helmet off and phone out, recording the action and smiling as ever. Little surprise too that none other than Largie Ramazani is providing much of the banter.

'The air is airing, the bike is biking, the team is teaming,' Ramazani says on a clip posted by Leeds. Shamoun, who runs the Eiscafe, says the players visit so frequently that he has asked them to leave a Google review.

In fairness, there's not much else to do in these parts. As for the village locals, they're used to seeing footballers roam their streets. The Hotel-Residence Klosterpforte, which is where Leeds did their pre-season training camp last summer, was also the base for Portugal in Euro 2024.

Christopher Schemmink, the hotel director, recalls Cristiano Ronaldo coming out of his room and taking it all in as thousands of supporters had gathered outside the hotel gates. 'There were six to seven thousand fans here on the day when Portugal arrived. We had 90 security staff doing three shifts a day to secure the venue,' Schemmink tells Mail Sport.

Portugal, who also used the base for the 2006 World Cup, booked out the entire venue, whereas Leeds only wanted the sports hotel. Admittedly, things are quieter with Leeds in town, helped by the secrecy around this camp and the fact fans are prohibited from attending due to security concerns raised by local authorities.

The reason why Leeds came back to this part of North Rhine-Westphalia is simple. For manager Daniel Farke, it worked last year ‑ and during his time at Norwich, too.

The complex is 40 minutes from his home town and he enjoys a long-term friendship with the family who own the hotel.

On the walls are framed pictures and signed shirts of all the teams and managers that have stayed here over the years, including Jose Mourinho and Jurgen Klopp.

Conversations about Leeds' return started from the moment they left last season and accelerated at the turn of the year when pre-season plans were discussed.

Japan was considered due to the influence of Ao Tanaka, as was America given the 49ers link, but Leeds had no certainty they'd be playing Premier League football.

In an era where pre-season tours are big earners, it is certainly not ideal from a commercial perspective. But from a footballing viewpoint, it ticks all the boxes.

'The first time we came with Leeds, everyone liked it because of the facilities and the good conditions,' said Farke. 'For the English soul of my players, it's also better not to have 40 degrees weather, so it's more or less the perfect venue.'

With two pitches on site, gym facilities, a swimming pool and a tennis court, everything is within walking distance.

The decision to return led to discontent among supporters, after fans were banned by German authorities again. Such has been the nature of covering this tour that we have had to delay reporting on matches until an hour after the final whistle, as per police guidance. It was the same last year.

Bar a few changes, like bringing two members of their own groundstaff to Germany and asking the hotel to improve the connectivity on site, the idea has been very much to replicate the success of last summer but with more intensity, ahead of the club's Premier League return.

In the last week, five signings have become seven, with German midfielder Anton Stach and Brazilian goalkeeper Lucas Perri arriving and doing their medicals here.

Adam Underwood, the new Sporting Director, travelled over to ensure constant communication between Farke and the recruitment team.

'If I'm really honest, I don't like a training camp that is so close to home because everyone thinks they can come around for a cup of coffee,' said Farke. 'The problem is that as a manager, you don't have that time especially at this part of the transfer window so it's annoying as I have to reply, "No no, no" to all these 157 Whatsapp messages,' he joked.

It has been that kind of week for Farke, who missed the staff against players paintballing session on Wednesday. By all accounts, a lot of cheating was involved.

The team dinners on site and a barbecue last Wednesday also provided the chance for the new signings to perform their initiation songs. Sean Longstaff and 6ft 4ins Stach have been mentioned as characters. On the pitch, the two new central midfielders should be influential too.

Schemmink recalls how Lazio once came and the singing was so loud that the village locals couldn't sleep. Leeds have been comparatively quiet.

Part of the allure of this place for football teams is the lack of distractions. Leeds have trained heavily and competitively, with some days including double sessions.

On the pitches, surrounded by club branding, they have worked on their usual 4-2-3-1 but also a 4-3-3 formation. Farke wants his players to be flexible, depending on the level of Premier League opposition. He also wants his team to be the fittest in the league.

Off the ball, the work has notched up considerably since they returned to Thorp Arch, three weeks ago.

'If we can be the fittest team in the Premier League, then it can only help us,' says full back Sam Byram. 'So it's something everyone has been working really hard on.'

Skipper Ethan Ampadu noted that the bulk of new signings being on the big side is not a coincidence.

'You have to be (physical). Everyone knows what the Premier League is about,' he said. 'You've got to be able to run and win the battles. Especially with the newly promoted sides, you have to show that first before you show the quality on the ball, which everyone in the league has. So you have to match the fight.'

He adds: 'We've got a really good culture in the squad already. So when good guys come in, they fit in easily.'

With so many incomings, there are naturally outgoings and the no-nonsense way that Farke has dealt with Patrick Bamford and Mateo Joseph has sent a message to the rest of the squad.

While the return of Jack Harrison remains the subject of much debate among Leeds fans, Farke has insisted that it is 'up to him to win their trust and confidence back', citing previous examples like Brenden Aaronson and Junior Firpo.

Across the friendlies, the amount of dialogue between Farke and Harrison has been interesting but if a move for Igor Paixao, the Brazilian winger, works out, Harrison's future will be uncertain.

With a new keeper in place, Illan Meslier is expected to move on if an offer comes in. To his credit, the Frenchman has trained and performed well during pre-season.

Yet such was the farcical nature of the first friendly against German third-tier opposition that after Meslier came off, he sat alongside us in the press box seats, rather than in the stands. It was a game where the opposition gave away a penalty for accidentally picking the ball up and Leeds' Alex Cairns was penalised for holding on to the ball too long.

Leeds played SC Paderborn, the team Farke's son plays for, on Saturday and will head home on Sunday, before a few days off.

Ultimately, it is difficult to take much from friendlies against weaker opposition - but things are shaping up nicely. Leeds have spent £75million so far and that figure will be closer to £150m by the end of the window, with at least two more major signings expected.

A move for Fulham's Rodrigo Muniz is still very much on the agenda. There is a clear strategy in place of adding players with top-level experience who are around the peak of their careers. And if Leeds are to stop the trend of promoted teams going straight back down, they desperately need that strategy to work.