Leeds United vs Fulham predictions, stats and lineups info | Championship preview
Leeds United have a chance to get their quest for promotion back on track when they host Fulham this weekend.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side could have moved three points clear at the top of the Championship last weekend but were beaten 2-0 by Cardiff City. They remain level on points with league leaders West Bromwich Albion, but second on goal difference, and still look set for automatic promotion with seven points separating them from third.
However, that gap could be reduced to four this weekend with third-placed Fulham making the trip to Elland Road. The Cottagers also lost on their return to the Championship last weekend, falling 2-0 to London rivals Brentford and thereby missing out on the chance to close the gap on Leeds.
With six games remaining in the Championship, Fulham have a comfortable seven-point lead over Preston North End in the final play-off place, but Scott Parker’s side will still have automatic promotion on their mind.
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Leeds United vs Fulham kick-off time and details
Competition: Championship
Venue: Elland Road
Date: Saturday, 27 June 2020
Kick-off: 3:00PM (UK time)
Where to watch Leeds United vs Fulham on TV
UK: Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Football
US: ESPN+
Leeds United & Fulham’s previous line-ups:
Leeds United (vs Cardiff City): Meslier; Ayling, White, Cooper, Dallas; Phillips; Costa, Roberts, Klich, Harrison; Bamford.
Fulham (vs Brentford): Rodak; Odoi, Hector, Ream, Bryan; Reed, Cairney; Knockaert, Cordova-Reid, Kebano; Mitrovic.
Neither side has any fresh injury concerns following their previous matches, but Leeds may be boosted by the return of Pablo Hernandez to training.
Players to watch:
Leeds United: Patrick Bamford received plenty of criticism from Leeds fans for his performance against Cardiff last weekend, particularly because he accidentally blocked what was a goal-bound shot from Jack Harrison that would have drawn his side level. Criticism is not new for the English forward who, despite being Leeds’ top scorer in the Championship with 13 goals, some feel has not been good enough to lead the line for the club, especially if they make it to the Premier League next season. Failing to score against Cardiff, Bamford has now found the net in just two of his 13 Championship appearances for Leeds in 2020, sporadic form that has also seen the club draw a blank on five occasions as a team. If Bamford is to prove he can star for Leeds in the Premier League, there may be no better game than one that could go some way to confirming their promotion.
Fulham: Another striker looking to make his mark on this game will be Fulham’s Aleksandar Mitrovic, who currently leads the Championship’s goalscoring charts. With 23 goals in 35 appearances so far, the Serbian striker has been at the heart of Fulham’s objective of an immediate return to the Premier League. But, like Bamford, he was unable to help his team last time out as they lost 2-0 to Brentford, the third game in a row in which he failed to score, with Fulham perhaps relying a bit too much on the Serbian. Excluding Mitrovic, the rest of the Fulham squad have combined to score 28 Championship goals this season, just five more than Mitrovic has managed on his own. But that won’t matter if he adds to his tally this weekend, having scored in the 2-1 win over Leeds earlier this season.
Scoreline prediction: Leeds United 2-1 Fulham
Championship 2019/20 recent form:
Leeds: WWWWL
Fulham: DWWDL
