Oliver Skipp has already sent Daniel Farke 'grateful' message before Spurs transfer link

Stuart Jamieson

14 June 2024 at 0:59 pm·3-min read

Leeds United transfer target Oliver Skipp knows full well how good Daniel Farke can be when it comes to developing young talent - having played a key role in his own career.

The Tottenham midfielder worked with Farke during a season-long loan spell at Norwich City in the 2020-21 campaign, becoming a key member of the Canaries side which won promotion to the Premier League that season, and earning himself a place in the EFL team of the season.

Farke has overseen the progress of Leeds youngsters such as Archie Gray, Crysencio Summerville and Georginio Rutter this season, but with the club missing out on promotion to the Premier League, faces another summer of rebuilding behind the scenes. Leeds have been linked with a move for Skipp, with the Spurs midfielder potentially available having slipped down the pecking order at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

It would mean a reunion for the pair, and Skipp was quick to credit Farke's influence on his successful Norwich loan upon his return to Spurs in 2021.

“It was a crucial time for me in terms of getting regular games," Skipp said. "You go out on loan with the hope that you’ll be able to play a significant number of matches, but I didn’t go to Norwich with the feeling that I’d play 45 of the 46 games and that the season would go as well as it did.

“I’m so grateful to Daniel Farke and all the players, they all helped me settle in so easily, and then helped to create the player that you see today. It was a massive part of my development, that season, going away from home, dealing with Covid-19 restrictions, and that all meant my sole focus was playing week in, week out against all different kinds of opposition in the Championship.

“One week you’ll play a team like Wycombe, who will play longer, and are very good at it. The next week it will be Swansea or Brentford, possession based teams. That was good to help my development, coming up against those different styles.

“The loan also helped develop me outside of football and you can’t underestimate how important it is to get that right to make sure you are performing on the pitch. It helps you grow up and become independent, having to do all the things you take for granted when you are younger, the things other people do, the things you don’t have to do for yourself, so it was a really good experience in that way.

“I got on with all the players so well, they all helped me and made sure I had everything I needed. Then it was up to me to make sure I made the most of it, something I was desperate to do to get first-team football. You can train with the first team week in, week out, and that’s amazing, but I just felt I needed that football and Norwich gave me the opportunity.”

While Skipp has struggled to consistently break into the Tottenham first-team, he is undoubtedly more experienced now than he was in his Norwich days, something that could be very appealing to a Leeds side which Farke felt lacked that key element at times last term.