Friday 1st May, 8:00pm | EllandRoad
Daniel Farke was unequivocal in his press conference this week, there is no time for self-pity, no time to dwell. Burnley come to Elland Road on Friday night with the job of securing our Premier League future not yet finished. The FA Cup was the dream but Premier League survival was always this season's mission. Forty points sounds comfortable but in the most contested relegation battle in recent memory, Farke is right to refuse to let his players relax. Friday night is an opportunity to get the job done, a huge one at that.
On paper it's the easiest of our remaining fixtures, under the lights at Elland Road against an already relegated team with four wins all season and just nine away points all campaign. They arrive managerless too, Scott Parker departing by mutual consent on Thursday with Mike Jackson parachuted in as interim with barely 24 hours notice. But football is not played on paper. In three previous meetings with Parker's Burnley we have not scored, two defeats and a nil nil draw, the two nil defeat at Turf Moor earlier this season being arguably one of the most frustrating performances of the season.
The scorelines don't tell the full story though. The xG across those three games suggests Leeds created and threatened but were wasteful rather than outplayed. Burnley have not found some magic formula to shut us out, we have just not been clinical enough. The change of manager changes the dynamic too. Parker would have set up to frustrate and hit on the break, exactly the gameplan that has worked against us before. Jackson is a different proposition, an interim with nothing to lose whose players are liberated by relegation and may actually have a go, which could suit Leeds far more.
Leeds go into this with the confidence of a five match unbeaten league run and without the baggage of a supposed hoodoo thanks to Parkers departure. The injury situation does raise tactical questions for Farke though. Without Gudmundsson and a natural left wing back replacement, does he stick with the back five that has underpinned that defensive solidity, or revert to a back four as we saw in the second half at Wembley? Okafor and Bijol are doubts but Farke is hopeful of having both. Stach is fit after 45 minutes at Wembley and Calvert-Lewin, 11 goals but one in his last eight, faces a Burnley side that has conceded 68 this season.
A win on Friday and Premier League survival is virtually assured.
