'Worried' - Chris Sutton, Alan Shearer & Paul Merson all agree on Leeds United result vs Crystal Palace
Leeds United head to Selhurst Park for another huge Premier League clash on Sunday.
Leeds United have been backed to take an important point from Crystal Palace by a trio of pundits.
Daniel Farke’s side head to Selhurst Park this weekend and will hope to pull further clear of their relegation rivals. West Ham are currently three points adrift of the Whites and hosting Manchester City this evening, with Nottingham Forest and Tottenham Hotspur facing Fulham and Liverpool respectively on Sunday.
Consecutive defeats at home to City and Sunderland have seen Leeds pulled back towards the relegation scrap, their six-point gap cut in half. But the Whites remain ahead of their point-per-game average target and former striker Chris Sutton expects them to tick along again this weekend.
In his predictions column for BBC Sport, Sutton wrote: “Leeds hammered Crystal Palace 4-1 before Christmas but it will be much closer when they meet on Sunday. Palace seem to have stabilised again, and have picked up a couple of wins to give themselves some breathing space over the bottom three.
“Leeds are in much greater danger and I am a bit worried about them at the moment. They need to keep picking up positive results. I really feel for Daniel Farke because he has had a great season but they are only three points clear of the relegation zone, and they really need something from this game.
“There will be some goals in this, but I think the points will be shared. Sutton's prediction: 2-2.”
Paul Merson and Alan Shearer agree on Leeds United verdict
Goals have been a recent problem for Leeds but Paul Merson expects them to find the net on their way to a point at Selhurst Park. And the former Arsenal midfielder couldn’t resist sending a sly dig towards old rivals Tottenham in his prediction.
“Leeds United have been dragged back into the relegation battle,” he told Sportskeeda. “I would say that has happened quite unluckily because they have been playing well. It's just that West Ham and Nottingham Forest have started getting results.
“The problem with Leeds is that they can't score goals. Even against Manchester City, they created chances. If you want to stay up in this league, you need goals and they aren't getting enough. Dominic Calvert-Lewin is now starting to struggle by showing the form he had at the back end of his career at Everton.
“I have a feeling Leeds will avoid relegation. They are playing good football, unlike Tottenham! I'm expecting them to get a point in this one. Prediction: Crystal Palace 1-1 Leeds United.”
Farke’s side will hope to benefit from the extra preparation time, with Sunday’s game sandwiched between a Europa Conference League last-16 tie for Palace. The Eagles drew 0-0 at home to Cypriot outfit AEK Larnaca on Thursday and have become very hard to predict.
“Leeds have been dragged into the relegation battle again after their last game against Sunderland – a poor result at home,” former Newcastle United striker Alan Shearer told the Metro. “Crystal Palace are up and down, and it seems to be a bit chaotic at their club. I’m going to go draw.”