Saturday 6th December 5:30pm | Elland Road
Leeds United welcome reigning champions Liverpool to Elland Road in Saturday’s teatime kick-off, buoyed by the momentum of their midweek heroics. Their emphatic 3-1 demolition of Chelsea has injected fresh belief into Daniel Farke’s squad and offered genuine hope of escaping the relegation mire. For a side that had previously lost six of their last seven matches, the turnaround in both performance and confidence was striking.
Farke’s recent tactical shift to a 5-3-2 formation appears to have unlocked the best from his players, allowing Leeds to lean into their traditional strengths: high-intensity running, physical dominance, and a willingness to battle in the air. While they lack the finesse and technical wizardry of the league’s elite, their cohesion and discipline in this new shape have made them a far more difficult proposition. Against Chelsea, the defensive line held firm, the midfield pressed aggressively, and the front two stretched the game intelligently.
In terms of team news, Leeds have several doubts up front. Dan James remains side-lined until the New Year with a calf issue. Strikers Lukas Nmecha (hamstring) and Dominic Calvert-Lewin (calf) are both doubtful after sustaining minor knocks in midweek, each rated at 50/50 for Liverpool’s visit. Should neither be risked, Joel Piroe could be in line for his first start of the season. At the back, Joe Rodon is 'managing' a groin strain but Sebastiaan Bornauw, recently eased back from a medial knee ligament problem, is expected to see increased action after his brief outing against Chelsea.
With both sides having played on Wednesday evening, Farke faces a balancing act between rotation and maintaining the momentum his side have rediscovered. Unforced changes would be a gamble, especially in a fixture where confidence, work-rate, and familiarity in the system could make the difference. The hope for Leeds will be that their key forwards pass late fitness tests to lead the line once more.
Liverpool, by contrast, arrive with questions hanging over their form. Three wins from their last nine in all competitions, coupled with a porous defence that has leaked 17 goals in that stretch, has piled pressure on manager Arne Slot. Their midweek 1-1 draw at home to Sunderland, a result few would have predicted at the start of the season, has further dented confidence. Despite the blip, Liverpool remain eighth in the Premier League table, just three points adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea, but they desperately need a statement performance to steady the ship.
Slot will be hopeful of welcoming Conor Bradley back from a muscular injury, a boost that could allow regular starter Joe Gomez to rest after two consecutive full matches. Jeremie Frimpong (thigh) and Giovanni Leoni (ACL) remain unavailable. The right-back slot could also be filled by Curtis Jones or even Dominik Szoboszlai, though the latter may be spared to allow Mohamed Salah to return to the attack. Federico Chiesa, bright in recent cameos, will also be pushing for a rare start alongside Liverpool’s talisman.
