Why football's World Cup is a massive turn-off for Leeds United boss

You might think that someone who manages in the Premier League would be energised by the prospect of watching some of the planet's top players go head-to-head in the United States of America, Mexico and Canada for six weeks.

Farke will be watching but only, he stresses, selectively. With little or no expectation of unearthing the next big thing, the German will be more focussed on recharging his batteries than obsessively following matches as he once did growing up in Germany.

"I won't watch much at all, sorry," was his response when asked by The Yorkshire Post what his viewing habits would be.

"When I was a kid and then a young player I watched every game and I was so excited. Then there was nothing bigger than the World Cup, I more or less had to make sure that I either watched it myself really concentrated and focused or sometimes with friends and family in the garden with a proper barbecue.

"I was just excited - you couldn't wait until the game starts.

"Then as a young coach and manager when I was in the lower tiers (of the German pyramid) you watched a lot for tactical reasons and to see a lot and to develop.

"Once you're working at the top level with the top players and in the best league in the world you play against (Pep) Guardiola, against (Mikel) Arteta, or before Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel and you more or less only work against the best coaches - no disrespect to the national team coaches.

"Sometimes I would say from a technical point of view the standard of the club games is on a very high level in comparison to (international) games."

Managing in the Premier League is such an all-encompassing job - even with the legions of support staff predecessors like Don Revie could never have dreamt of - that knowing when to take a break is important.

Perhaps for some managers, that will mean watching the sport they love from a different perspective, cheering on their country or their friends.

Farke will do a bit of that, but in the main he wants to get away from a tournament which, perhaps fortunately for him, will largely be played through the European night.

Who are the 11 Yorkshire-based players at the World Cup?

"I have watched so much football during the whole season, my life is more or less 11 months of football, football, football it just seems," he commented. "Sometimes you just have a ball (and chain) on your neck and then there are four weeks of recovering.

"To be honest, if I then watched endless football during the summer I wouldn't have the joy when I need it, when it (the Premier League) starts again.

"I watch far fewer games than I did in former years.

"Of course when there are important games, games I'm interested in and I think, 'Okay they are two good teams against each other,' I will watch.

"I will follow the England games, I will follow the German games but one thing is for sure, I won't watch every group-stage game.

"During the holiday sometimes family members are watching more games and I just stay in the garden on the sunbed. I'm happy with my strawberry cake and coffee.

"When I'm really interested in some tactical approaches yes, and the big games, the final or whatever, yes of course, but not too many."

Signing prospects from summer tournaments

Signing players on the back of a major tournament can be a dangerous game. Many is the player bought on the back of starring at a World Cup, European Championship, Copa America or African Cup of Nations who proved unsuited to the hurly-burly of English football.

Even when Farke started as a manager in the late Noughties, players could arguably still be discovered on those stages, but such is relentless coverage of football worldwide - actual and statistical - this tournament should not throw many surprises up for him and his recruitment team.

"(You might watch) some players that you already have in your head who are going to the World Cup," he conceded.

"Sometimes you even hope they don't excel too much because then the price goes up! It's a bit tricky.

"But football is so open I wouldn't think that right now we watch a game at the World Cup and we find the diamond that we haven't found before.

"I wouldn't judge (a player) in this way but of course you have a look at what happens in terms of injuries, what happens in terms of momentum if all of a sudden the value of a player rises to an unbelievable height and then you have competition with Real Madrid, Barcelona and Man City. That could be sometimes tricky for Leeds United.

"I wouldn't say there are big surprises in the World Cup where you find a player that you were not aware of before."