Leeds Utd vs Sheffield Wednesday news: Five key battles and score prediction
Championship football returns this weekend following the completion of the FA Cup third round and brings with it a feisty Yorkshire derby between Leeds United and Sheffield Wednesday.
Leeds enter this fixture having advanced to the fourth round thanks to an uncomfortably close 1-0 win against Harrogate Town.
On the other hand, Wednesday were dumped out of the competition on penalties by Frank Lampard’s Coventry City after conceding a last-minute equaliser to the Sky Blues.
Sports News Blitz writer Samuel Leasley analyses five key battles to anticipate in Sunday’s clash at Elland Road and offers a score prediction.
Daniel Farke vs Danny Rohl
Farke will no doubt be happy to have seen his side bounce back from consecutive league draws to advance in the FA Cup, but the manner of the victory may worry him.
The Whites struggled to break down a resilient Harrogate defence for nearly an hour and their second-choice backline looked decidedly shaky against the visitors.
With the Championship promotion race now heating up, Farke will be looking to extend his side’s impressive home record, with Leeds unbeaten at Elland Road since September.
Top scorer Joel Piroe is set to provide a timely boost after sitting out last weekend’s fixture with a slight injury.
In contrast, Rohl was openly disappointed with the end result in his side’s penalty defeat to Coventry City in the cup but not disheartened by the performance shown by his players.
The German rotated his team from the 2-2 home draw with Millwall the week prior, with the likes of Josh Windass and Barry Bannan on the bench for the FA Cup.
To add to their woes, Southampton have recalled Shea Charles from his loan.
Rohl has worked wonders with limited resources at Wednesday, but his chairman’s reluctance to act in the transfer market is proving a bump in the road for his play-off ambitions.
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Manor Solomon vs Yan Valery
Solomon was voted man of the match against Harrogate after laying on an assist for Largie Ramazani and looking easily the most dangerous player on the pitch.
The left winger has really come into his own in the Leeds starting line-up in recent weeks with five goal contributions in his last six fixtures.
In a Leeds side with incredible talent in wide areas, Solomon has had to be on top form to dislodge Wilfried Gnonto and Ramazani from the team.
As a result, the Israeli international has been a regular target for opposition full-backs in his ten starts, having won 18 fouls in that time.
Valery, it must be said, is not one to shy away from a tackle and could add to Solomon’s foul record as the right-back has already committed 25 fouls this term.
In an ever-present campaign for the Owls, Valery has accumulated impressive defensive statistics, making 19 successful tackles and 32 interceptions.
This is not to say that Valery is purely a defensive full-back either as the former Southampton man has also scored two and assisted three in the Championship.
On Sunday, given the attacking talent Leeds possess, Valery will have his work cut out to secure a Wednesday backline that has only achieved one clean sheet in their last ten outings.
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Jayden Bogle vs Djeidi Gassama
One of the players given a rest during the FA Cup weekend was right-back Bogle, and it is almost certain the former Blade will return to the line-up come Sunday.
Bogle has established himself as one of the first names on the team sheet under Farke and, following a shaky start to his Leeds career, has developed a reputation for strong defensive work.
He has made 35 successful tackles, the most in the squad, and provided 14 interceptions.
Alongside Dan James on the Leeds right-hand side, Bogle has created a strong attacking partnership, scoring three and assisting two thanks to his overlapping prowess.
An attacking player who will be looking to take advantage of Bogle’s forward-thinking approach is Gassama, who is likely to be one of Wednesday’s biggest threats on the counter.
And while Gassama is the most fouled player in the Championship, having been fouled 54 times, Bogle has committed the most fouls on the Leeds team with 34, so the match-up is sure to be interesting.
The former PSG man has been hit-and-miss for the Owls in recent weeks, scoring in victories over Oxford and Derby but fairly ineffective against Millwall and Stoke.
Gassama’s pace in behind the defence could prove decisive in this fixture, in particular as the Owls inevitably have to soak up Leeds pressure.
Joel Piroe vs Di’Shon Bernard
Piroe has been Leeds’ main attacking threat in the 18-yard box this season and continues to rack up goal contributions despite criticism of his lack of pressing within Farke’s system.
He currently has the third-highest tally of goals and assists in the Championship, trailing only Finn Azaz and Borja Sainz in that regard, while sitting atop the Leeds scoring charts.
Despite not providing the same energy and pace as Mateo Joseph, Piroe has been ruthlessly efficient with his chances up front, having bagged his ten goals from an xG of only 6.4.
Operating in a similar fashion to Dimitar Berbatov, Piroe profits from the trickery and speed of the likes of James and Solomon while providing deft movement to evade opposition defenders.
The man tasked with keeping Piroe quiet on Sunday will probably be Bernard, who will need to be fully focused in order to quell not only the Dutchman but the Leeds attacking line in general.
Bernard will also need to keep his discipline in check as the central defender has already accumulated five bookings and two red cards this season.
The Jamaican international has been a regular feature in the centre of defence for the Owls and has provided 18 successful tackles alongside 24 interceptions.
With Bernard leading the way, Rohl will be hoping for a strong defensive improvement after Wednesday have conceded the most goals of any side in the top half of the table.
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Ao Tanaka vs Barry Bannan
Arguably the biggest bargain signing in the Championship this season, Tanaka has been brilliant for the Whites.
And even though the likes of Ethan Ampadu and Ilja Gruev have returned from injury in recent weeks, dropping the Japanese international seems impossible.
Tanaka netted his first goal in Leeds’ draw at Hull City a few weeks ago, firing a shot into the top right corner to spark wild celebrations with his teammates.
In defensive midfield, Tanaka has proven himself second to none in accumulating 28 tackles and 25 interceptions in just 18 starts.
He has also been incredibly capable with the ball at his feet, trailing only midfield partner Joe Rothwell in passing accuracy, with 92% of his passes finding their target.
This weekend, Tanaka will be looking to shut down a man who once donned the white shirt of Leeds in the form of Bannan.
It has been ten years since Bannan joined Wednesday, and the midfielder has shown no signs of slowing down his progress at the club.
The Scotsman has won 26 tackles from a deep playmaker role and can count himself unlucky to only have a single assist to go with his four goals.
A former international, he has created 39 chances for an xA of 4.4, meaning more blame should be laid at the feet of the Wednesday forward line than himself when it comes to his low assist figures.
Looking ahead to Sunday, the midfield battle can become very open when Leeds commit bodies forward and Bannan will not hesitate to exploit any available space at Elland Road.
Summary
This Yorkshire derby has all the attributes of a feisty affair, and Wednesday in particular will be desperate to improve on their poor form.
Leeds won 2-0 at Hillsborough back in August and would not turn their nose up at a similar outcome on Sunday.
While Wednesday do carry an attacking threat, I believe their defensive frailties will come back to bite them at Elland Road.
Score prediction: Leeds Utd 3-1 Sheffield Wednesday
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