The deadliest attacks in the Championship will lock horns at a packed-out Elland Road on Wednesday night when Leeds United host Norwich City for a crucial second-tier clash.
The Whites are storming towards promotion to the Premier League at the second attempt, whilst the Canaries are aiming to keep sight of the top-six places heading into February.
Match preview
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Always likely to rise to the big occasion - especially at their Elland Road fortress - Leeds United extended their unbeaten run in Yorkshire derbies to an eye-catching 18 matches on Sunday afternoon, when Daniel Farke's troops secured a comfortable 3-0 success over Sheffield Wednesday.
Following their playoff failure last May, much was made of the high-profile departures at the Whites with both Georginio Rutter and Crysencio Summerville sealing Premier League switches, although it was the summer arrivals who stole the headlines against the Owls, with Ao Tanaka, Manor Solomon and Largie Ramazani all finding the net.
Unbeaten across their last 10 competitive fixtures - nine of those arriving in the second tier - Leeds have assumed control at the very summit of the Championship standings, one point ahead of Chris Wilder's Sheffield United in second and three points ahead of Burnley in third.
The Whites' credible automatic-promotion push has been built on a formidable record at Elland Road so far, with Wednesday's hosts losing just once and collecting a staggering 35 points from 14 Championship home matches, whilst Farke's men are currently 12 games unbeaten at their Yorkshire base.
Firing in a sensational 51 goals so far to lead the division's attacking ranks, Leeds have felt comfortable enough to offload one of their young attackers on loan for the remainder of the campaign, with right-winger Joe Gelhardt moving to relegation-threatened Hull City.
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As is the case with the majority of teams in the Championship, Norwich City possess a poor recent record at Elland Road, and their last trip to that part of Yorkshire ended in a traumatic 4-0 defeat in the second leg of last season's playoff semi-finals, killing the East Anglians' hopes of a Premier League return.
The Canaries will not be too confident of banishing the ghosts of last May following back-to-back losses across all competitions since the conclusion of the festive period, with Wednesday's visitors exiting the FA Cup against Brighton & Hove Albion before suffering defeat at Sheffield United on the weekend.
After a Harrison Burrows brace for the Blades condemned Norwich to their ninth loss of the league campaign on Saturday afternoon, Johannes Hoff Thorup's men are currently occupying 11th spot in the Championship table, five points behind West Bromwich Albion in sixth.
Scoring 43 goals across 27 second-tier matches to date, only Wednesday's hosts Leeds (51) have netted on more occasions in the division than the Canaries, who have been major beneficiaries of Borja Sainz's excellent performances, with the Spaniard leading the Championship's Golden Boot race.
Norwich will be looking to address their worrying away form during the second half of the season as they aim to mount a charge for the playoffs, with the East Anglian outfit collecting just 13 points from 14 contests away from Carrow Road during the 2024-25 term.
Team News
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Leeds have suffered a major injury blow recently, with first-choice centre-back Pascal Struijk set to be sidelined for at least a couple of weeks due to a hamstring injury.
As a result, Ethan Ampadu started alongside Joe Rodon in defence for the Whites last time out, and the 'Welsh Wall' will be looking to keep another shutout on Wednesday night.
Also struggling with a hamstring problem, Patrick Bamford has not featured for Leeds since New Year's Day, leaving 10-goal forward Joel Piroe to lead the line for the hosts.
Norwich are severely missing the attacking antics of 15-strike Sainz, who was banned for six matches at the start of January for spitting at an opponent earlier in the campaign.
The Canaries have dipped into the winter market to replenish their offensive options, with Czech youngster Matej Jurasek joining from Slavia Prague.
Leeds United possible starting lineup:
Meslier; Bogle, Rodon, Ampadu, Byram; Tanaka, Rothwell; James, Ramazani, Solomon; Piroe
Norwich City possible starting lineup:
Gunn; Stacey, Duffy, Doyle, Mahovo; Fisher, McLean, Marcondes; Hernandez, Dobbin, Sargent
We say: Leeds United 2-0 Norwich City
Unbeaten at Elland Road since September, Leeds should be supremely confident of recording another Yorkshire triumph in front of their home faithful on Wednesday.
The arrivals of Sargent and new signing Jurasek onto the pitch could provide a real boost to Norwich's chances of a result, although we feel that the hosts will be too strong.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Carter White
