Premier League 'signing of the season' could miss Sunderland vs Leeds United with three stars at risk
Leeds United head to the Stadium of Light for a huge Premier League clash after Christmas.
Leeds United and their December 28 opponents Sunderland could both be without their captains for this month’s Premier League meeting at the Stadium of Light.
The Whites face their 2024/25 Championship promotion rivals three days after Christmas and eight on from Saturday’s home game against Crystal Palace. Both newly-promoted sides are currently outside the relegation zone but it is the Black Cats who have enjoyed the more impressive season.
Regis Le Bris’ side currently sit eighth in the Premier League, having just beaten fierce rivals Newcastle United 1-0. Key to their success has been a raft of impressive summer arrivals and few have made a bigger impact than Granit Xhaka, who joined in a £17million deal from Bayer Leverkusen.
Wayne Rooney recently labelled Xhaka his Premier League signing of the season, with the Swiss midfielder having an incredible impact on a Sunderland side otherwise lacking Premier league experience. But the Black Cats captain could end up missing the visit of Leeds through suspension.
FA rules state any player who accumulates five yellow cards before the end of their team’s 19th Premier League game will serve an automatic one-match ban. After the midway point of the campaign that threshold increases to 10 bookings, with the punishment also increasing to two games.
Xhaka is currently on four yellow cards and has been since early November, walking the suspension tightrope successfully for five fixtures since - including last week’s Wear-Tyne derby. But if the 33-year-old is booked during Saturday’s Premier League trip to Brighton, he will be forced to sit out the December 28 clash with Daniel Farke’s side.
Two other Sunderland players have been walking the tightrope recently, with Noah Sadiki and Reinildo Mandava both on four yellow cards. However the pair will not feature this weekend or against Leeds, having gone to AFCON alongside another four teammates.
Sadiki and Reinildo will certainly miss the December 28 visit of Leeds alongside Habib Diarra, Arthur Masuaku, Bertrand Traore and Chemsdine Talbi. Xhaka will know by full-time at Brighton this weekend if he’ll be eligible to play or not.
Leeds United pair one booking away from a ban
Two of Farke’s squad are also walking the suspension tightrope heading into that December 28 game at Sunderland. Xhaka’s opposite number and Leeds captain Ethan Ampadu is one booking away from a ban, as is right-back Jayden Bogle.
Ampadu has been one caution away from suspension since picking up his fourth yellow card in last month’s 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa, with the combative midfielder doing well to avoid further punishment since. Bogle’s fourth booking came against Liverpool earlier this month.
With 16 Premier League games played so far, Ampadu and Bogle will need to come through a further three matches without being booked to avoid a suspension. The cut-off point for Leeds, barring any postponements, is full-time at Liverpool on New Year’s Day.
Pascal Struijk is also at a slight risk of being suspended before that cut-off point, although the Dutchman will need to be booked twice in the next three games to serve a ban. Gabriel Gudmundsson, Anton Stach, Willy Gnonto and Noah Okafor are on two cautions each, meaning they would need to see yellow in all of the next three fixtures.