Leeds United will put their Championship title bid to one side when they play host to fellow second-tier outfit Millwall at Elland Road in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday lunchtime.
The Whites will be seeking revenge against the Lions after suffering a 1-0 league defeat at The Den in November last year.
Match preview
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Leeds extended their impressive unbeaten record in all competitions to 14 matches after beating Coventry City 2-0 away from home on Wednesday night, keeping their sixth consecutive clean sheet in the process.
After scoring a brace in the Whites' thumping 7-0 victory over Cardiff City last weekend, Joel Piroe opened the scoring against Coventry before Jayden Bogle added a second just before the half-hour mark to send the South Yorkshire side five points clear at the top of the Championship table.
Daniel Farke was complementary of his side's "top-class performance", but he has encouraged his players to be "much more efficient" and was critical of their "cutting edge" in the final third against Coventry, something that he believes could prove costly against strong opponents.
Leeds will soon face a challenging run of Championship fixtures against Watford, Sunderland, Sheffield United and West Bromwich Albion, but they must first turn their attention to the FA Cup as they endeavour to reach the fifth round for the third successive season.
The Whites, who beat Harrogate Town 1-0 in the third round last month, will fancy their chances of success on Saturday as they have won eight of their last nine home meetings with Millwall in all competitions.
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Millwall failed to win any of their first four Championship matches under the tutelage of new head coach Alex Neil, but they have since come out on top in each of their last three matches, most recently beating Queens Park Rangers 2-1 at The Den last weekend.
Aaron Connolly's opener inside just 30 seconds was swiftly cancelled out by an Alfie Lloyd equaliser just three minutes later during a frantic start to the contest, but the Lions had debutant Luke Cundle to thank for netting what proved to be the winning goal on the 25-minute mark.
Nine points accumulated over the space of eight days has helped Millwall climb up to 14th in the Championship standings, 13 points clear of the relegation zone and only four points behind the playoff positions with 16 league games still remaining.
Millwall are now bidding to reach the fifth round of the FA Cup for the first time since 2018-19, but they travel to Elland Road this weekend having lost each of their last six ties against teams from the same division or higher than themselves, including a 3-2 defeat against last season's Championship winners Leicester City.
The Lions, who beat non-league outfit Dagenham & Redbridge 3-0 in the third round last month, have never faced Leeds before in the FA Cup. The only previous cup competition in which they have lock horns with the Whites was the short-lived Full Members' Cup, winning 2-0 in second-round ties in December 1987 and November 1988.
Team News
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Leeds' only injury concern is with striker Patrick Bamford, who is yet to return to training after a spell on the sidelined recovering from a hamstring injury.
Farke has confirmed that he will "probably rotate on a few more than just one or two positions" this weekend, so key players including Joe Rodon, Ethan Ampadu, Ao Tanaka, Daniel James and Piroe may all begin as substitutes or be rested entirely.
Karl Darlow, Josuha Guilavogui, Pascal Struijk, Sam Byram, Joe Rothwell, Wilfried Gnonto, Mateo Joseph and Largie Ramazani were among those who started in the third-round win over Harrogate, the latter of whom scored the only goal in that game, and they will be hoping to force their way back into the first XI on Saturday.
As for Millwall, Femi Azeez has stepped up his return from injury and has returned to training, while Neil has also confirmed that Josh Coburn is back on the grass. Whether either player makes an appearance in the matchday squad remains to be seen, though.
Shaun Hutchinson and Aidomo Emakhu are also not too far away from a comeback, while Ryan Leonard is targeting a return from a calf injury at the end of March.
Casper De Norre was on target in the third-round win over Dag & Red and he is in contention to start in centre-midfield alongside either George Saville or Billy Mitchell, while the likes of Macaulay Langstaff, Duncan Watmore and George Honeyman will all be pushing for a recall.
Leeds United possible starting lineup:
Darlow; Schmidt, Guilavogui, Struijk, Byram; Gruev, Rothwell; Gnonto, Aaronson, Ramazani; Joseph
Millwall possible starting lineup:
Jensen; Crama, Tanganga, Cooper, Bryan; Mitchell, De Norre; Watmore, Honeyman, Connolly; Ivanovic
We say: Leeds United 2-0 Millwall
A fiery North-South battle could be on the cards this weekend between two in-form teams who will back themselves to reach the fifth round. Leeds will be regarded as favourites to come out on top, though, and should find a way to get the better of the Lions, even if Farke is to make multiple changes to his lineup.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
