Intriguing encounter as Bielsa tackles Rodgers
Leeds United welcome Leicester City to Elland Road on Sunday afternoon in hoping to build on their 2-1 win at Norwich City last weekend. The Whites are three points above the relegation zone but would love to extend that gap on the cusp of the international break. Burnley sit one place behind them in 18th and mobilised with a 3-1 win over Brentford on Saturday, with some confidence built and a victory under their belt Sean Dyche’s men are far more credible candidates to climb the table in the weeks to come. The Foxes play host to Spartak Moscow in the Europa League on Thursday evening and therefore Brendan Rodgers may have to shuffle his pack a little.
Leicester have been juggling both competitions for a while now and so the Northern Irishman will have a clear plan in looking to manage the two encounters before their weeks of respite.
Process
The Whites are trending a little bit lower than the Foxes and behind the standards that they set last term however it is immeasurable how much the win over the Canaries would have boosted their confidence. The support of Marcelo Bielsa at the helm is unwavering and it should be a cracking atmosphere at Elland Road to help the side pull away from the early season relegation conversation.
Onto the numbers, Leeds have struggled this season as a whole, ranking 17th going forward and 16th at the back in terms of expected goals (xG). Bielsa’s men have scored 10 from 11.7 xGF at an average of 1.17 xGF per game and conceding 17 from 17.2 xGA. Ilian Meslier between the sticks continues to be a key player in the way that they play and the young Frenchman could go on to have a huge influence on the fine margins that mean so in the Premier League as the season progresses.
As for the Foxes, it was an alarmingly slow start to the campaign however their resounding 4-2 win over Manchester United has given everyone a boost and they will be confident of getting past Spartak on Thursday to place themselves better to qualify for the Europa League knockout stages. They are performing a bit better than Leeds and have more firepower in attack, however it does feel like quite an evenly matched encounter given their midweek exploits.
Goals?
Overs appeals despite it being a rarity in Leeds matches so far this term. It is a huge opportunity to create some breathing space and a more positive outlook going into the break.
- Leeds have scored in six of ten.
- Leeds have conceded in eight of ten.
- Leeds have seen both teams score in five of ten.
- Leeds have seen over 2.5 goals in three of ten.
- Leicester have scored in eight of ten.
- Leicester have conceded in nine of ten.
- Leicester have seen both teams score in seven of ten.
- Leicester have seen over 2.5 goals in seven of ten.
Post bet chat Marcus's Tips:
We were a little unfortunate here, 1-1.