Leeds United kick off another round of Championship action as they welcome West Bromwich Albion to Elland Road for a pivotal Championship clash.
Victory will send the hosts top ahead of the weekend whilst West Brom can reopen a four-way promotion fight with all three points.
Team news
Embed from Getty ImagesLeeds manager, Marcelo Bielsa will name an unchanged team to face West Brom.
Kemar Roofe (knee) however remains absent with Adam Forshaw doubtful as he struggles to regain fitness after his own knee injury.
West Brom meanwhile have been handed a triple boost with Ahmed Hegazi (ankle), Hal Robson-Kanu (hip) and Jacob Murphy (muscular strain) all hoping to feature.
Chris Brunt (calf) and James Morrison could be in contention after being snubbed against Sheffield United last weekend.
Form
Leeds enter this match unbeaten in three of their last four but have scored in nine of their last ten matches across all competitions, losing 1-0 at QPR in midweek.
At home, Leeds have won three of last five but have produced just one clean sheet in that time.
West Brom also lost their last match by a single goal against fellow promotion rivals – Sheffield United, ending a four match unbeaten run.
The Baggies are also yet draw blank on their travels since a 1-0 loss at Hull in early November, with eight of their 19 away goals in last nine trips coming from Jay Rodriguez and Dwight Gayle who netted four goals each in that time.
Stat Attack
- Leeds have lost their last four meetings since a 0-0 draw in January 2003.
- Three of those defeats came at The Hawthorns, with the only defeat at Elland Road in that time being 3-2 in January 2007.
- Leeds have conceded twice in last three meetings with West Brom wich took place in March, although those three defeats came at The Hawthorns.
- Jay Rodriguez has gone three straight league games this season without scoring for West Brom on three separate occasions.
- Dwight Gayle has scored in all three of his league appearances against Leeds.
Prediction
With just over two months until the season is over, this is swim or sink time so getting momentum here is crucial.
Leeds need a strong performance here after their midweek defeat but West Brom know how to score on the road, so expect either a cagey affair or goals galore.
Ultimately Leeds have the more reason to be cautious here with Bristol City and Sheffield United to come in next fortnight, whereas West Brom only has the Robins to face next month out of those currently around them.
On that note, I can see a draw coming here as a point apiece is valuable for both sides at this stage of season.
Prediction: Leeds United 1-1 WBA
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