After a difficult March, Daniel Farke believes Dominic Calvert-Lewin's crucial weekend penalties for Leeds United will give him a major confidence boost for the run-in.

After picking up a hamstring strain in training, Calvert-Lewin was on the bench for Sunday's FA Cup quarter-final at West Ham United.

He went into it on the back of seven matches without a goal, including a penalty at Crystal Palace where he missed the target in a 0-0 draw, and a big miss on his return to international football after nearly five years, for England against Uruguay.

Farke insisted it was always the plan for the striker from Sheffield to be cut for the squad to face Japan, but it seemed to close the door on the 29-year-old's chances of going to a first World Cup this summer.

Yet on Sunday at West Ham Calvert-Lewin rose to the occasion, scoring the penalty which put Leeds 2-0 up six minutes after coming on.

The Whites threw that advantage away and were taken to penalties but after seeing the goalkeepers save the first two kicks of the shoot-out, from Joel Piroe and Jarrod Bowen, Calvert-Lewin scored the third to set his side up to progress 4-2.

Asked what the penalties would mean for Calvert-Lewin's confidence, former striker Farke replied: "A lot, especially big pressure moments.

"I was a bit concerned with the first penalty. Normally I don't like to have a player who is just a few moments on the pitch to take a penalty but he showed great character to take on the situation and put it to bed. He had a very similar role like in Birmingham (in round four, where) he had to take the second penalty.

PRESSURE ON: Dominic Calvert-Lewin opens the scoring from the third penalty of Leeds United's FA Cup quarter-final shoot-out at West Ham United (Image: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

placeholder image — PRESSURE ON: Dominic Calvert-Lewin opens the scoring from the third penalty of Leeds United's FA Cup quarter-final shoot-out at West Ham United (Image: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

"Especially after Joel missed the first one, how he dealt with the situation and put us in front was quite important and will be a major boost for his confidence."

Leeds have seven Premier League games remaining to secure their place for next season, with a four-point gap to West Ham. They face Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-finals.

That has caused the scheduled game at Bournemouth to be brought forward to April 22.

One more match in the relegation battle may have to be moved for the FA Cup, with Leeds due to host Brighton and Hove Albion and Chelsea at home to Tottenham Hotspur on Cup final weekend.