Wednesday 3rd December, 8:15pm | Elland Road
Leeds United boss Daniel Farke faces some crucial selection dilemmas ahead of Wednesday evening’s clash with Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea at Elland Road. The Whites have endured a torrid run of form, losing four consecutive matches and slipping into the bottom three, yet their spirited display against Manchester City at the weekend offered signs of encouragement.
Five changes were made for the trip to the Etihad, with AO Tanaka and Ilia Gruev stepping in for the injured Anton Stach and Sean Longstaff. Longstaff is side-lined until mid-January with a calf injury, while Stach, recovering from concussion, resumed light training on Sunday morning, and is available for selection. Given his current rib injury, it will be interesting to see whether the German International starts!
Brenden Aaronson, Gabriel Gudmundsson, and Noah Okafor were also dropped, as James Justin, Tanaka, and Dan James earned rare starts. However, James will miss out against Chelsea after sustaining a hamstring injury, prompting Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s introduction at half-time against City. We await to see the extend of Dan James' injury, but rumours indicate he could be out of action for a while!
Calvert-Lewin formed a promising partnership with Nmecha, which Farke may be tempted to deploy again on Wednesday. Both got on the scoresheet at the weekend making their inclusion onto Wednesday's starting XI likely. Leeds only other injury is Sebastiaan Bornauw, who is nursing an MCL issue.
Chelsea arrive without Moises Caicedo, suspended after a red card against Arsenal, but could welcome back Cole Palmer, who has recovered from a fractured toe. Rising star Estevão Willian, already on five goals this season, may be handed his first start, setting the stage for a fascinating encounter under the Elland Road lights.
