Whites boss Daniel Farke made ten changes to his team for United’s most recent outing in Tuesday night’s clash at Watford which arrived three days on from the club’s FA Cup exit at home to Millwall. Those ten changes, though, saw Farke revert to exactly the same team that lined up for the previous midweek league clash at Coventry City, fit again centre-back Pascal Struijk dropping back to the bench as Ethan Ampadu again partnered Joe Rodon at centre-back.
The Championship wins against Watford and Coventry have kept Leeds very much in pole position in their Championship promotion and title quest, despite having dropped down to second place and behind Sheffield United. Saturday’s 1-0 win for the Blades at Luton Town saw Chris Wilder’s side leapfrog Leeds into top spot but only by a single point and with Leeds having a game in hand.
That game in hand now comes against a big automatic promotion rival in a fourth-placed Sunderland side who will line up at Elland Road sat seven points behind Farke’s Whites. The gap would have been ten points but for an awful error from keeper Illan Meslier in October’s reverse fixture at the Stadium of Light which ended in a 2-2 draw after Meslier’s late blooper. But the Frenchman has now kept six clean sheets in a row and his chance to lay a Black Cats ghost to rest is part of our predicted Whites XI for Monday night’s showdown under the Elland Road lights.
1. GK: Illan Meslier
Whites boss Farke has stuck by Meslier through thick and thin and the Frenchman is the only Leeds player to have played every minute of every league game of the campaign so far. It's now six clean sheets in a row for the clear first choice keeper who will now have the chance to lay a Black Cats ghost to rest. Photo: Cameron Howard
2. RB: Jayden Bogle
Clear first choice right back who is in terrific form and undoubtedly one of the team's most impressive players of late. Photo: Ben Roberts Photo
3. CB: Joe Rodon
An absolute rock at the back and just a question of who partners him. Photo: George Wood
4. CB: Ethan Ampadu
Struijk is clearly waiting in the wings and is a more 'natural' centre-back than club captain midfielder Ampadu. But Rodon and Ampadu have been unbreachable at the back of late and it would seem likely that Farke would keep it as it is. Photo: Michael Regan
5. LB: Junior Firpo
The ever reliable Sam Byram took some shifting from the side upon Firpo's return from injury but Firpo is now back in the starting XI and it looks set to stay that way. Photo: Matt McNulty
6. CM: Ao Tanaka
What a signing and the way he turned Tom Ince in a circle in victory at Watford remains fresh in the memory. Surely starts in midfield but probably a hard call as to who partners him, even on the assumption that Ampadu stays at centre-back. Photo: George Wood