Leeds United will host Sheffield United in a huge Yorkshire Derby, with both teams angling to continue strong starts against tough opposition.
“What a massive challenge we have; they are favourites to win the division, they will know, their fans will know, they need to go up.” Said Chris Wilder, Sheffield United Manager, while speaking at the pre-game press conference.
Sheffield United remain unbeaten so far this league campaign and will look to extend to 10 games and a 7th consecutive clean sheet.
Daniel Farke, Leeds boss, spoke about this in his pregame conference: “I am always looking forward to the next but, overall you have to say it was a tough start in terms of the fixture list and even tougher in terms of rotation than we wanted to have.”
Sheffield United should have few notable absences, with Oliver Arblaster expected to return to the first team after an ankle injury.
Although Leeds continue to manage a host of injuries including club captain Ethan Ampadu, Ilia Gruev and Maxillian Weber.
Farke commented on this saying: “It annoys a bit we have so many injuries, but we have to make sure we find solutions ourselves.”
The Lily Whites will be coming off the back of a disappointing draw to Sunderland, caused by a devastating individual error from Leeds goalkeeper Illian Meslier.
Though Leeds have won both of the previous encounters in the 2020/21 Premier League campaign where both teams competed and the Blades only accumulated 23 points.
Jayden Bogle will likely feature after his transfer from the Blades over the summer for an undisclosed fee.
Sheffield United Press Conference, (2024, October 16th) https://www.sufc.co.uk/news/2024/october/17/press-conference/
Leeds United Press Conference, (2024, October 16th) https://www.leedsunited.com/en/news/watch-daniel-farke-ahead-of-sheffield-united-clash