Leeds vs Chelsea: Preview and Prediction
Premier League clubs Chelsea and Leeds will square off against each other on Matchday 3 of the 2021-22 season at Elland Road on Sunday. Both the clubs have one win and one loss to their name and are within touching distance of the top four.
Chelsea occupies the seventh position in the points table with four points from two games. The Blues have come out with a conservative approach this season by scoring only three goals while conceding two so far.
Leeds is one spot above them in the points table with the same number of points from the same number of matches. They share the same goal difference as that of Chelsea, however, they overtake them on the basis of the number of goals scored as they have netted four goals as opposed to Chelsea’s three.
Current Form
Leeds began their Premier League campaign with a 2-1 win over Wolverhampton. The Peacocks found themselves one goal behind in the sixth minute itself but equalised the proceedings in the 24th minute through Rodrigo Moreno’s shot from inside the box. Rayan Aït-Nouri mistakenly slotted the ball in his own net to score an own goal as Leeds emerged as lucky winners in their home fixture.
Rodrigo Moreno was once again on the money in the away fixture against Southampton as he scored a brace within fifteen minutes of the second half. However, Leeds conceded two goals in the final thirty minutes of the game to share the spoils in a 2-2 encounter.
Chelsea started their Premier League campaign with a slender 1-0 victory over Everton courtesy of Jorginho’s penalty at the dying embers of the first half. In their next fixture against Tottenham, Chelsea took the lead through Kalidou Koulibaly in the 19th minute after the Senegalese volleyed a corner kick into the net.
After the scoreline got levelled in the second half, Reece James once again put Chelsea in the driver’s seat after connecting a cross from Raheem Sterling in the 77th minute. However, the joy was short-lived as Spurs equalised in the dying moments of the game to walk away with one point in a 2-2 stalemate.
Head to Head Record
Chelsea and Leeds have squared off against each other a total of 106 times, with the latter leading the head-to-head count with a margin of 39-37. Thirty games between the two sides ended in a draw. However, Chelsea is unbeaten against Leeds in their last eight encounters, winning six of them. The Peacocks last won a fixture against Chelsea in December 2002.
Team News
N’Golo Kante suffered an injury in the game against Tottenham Hotspur and may have to be sidelined due to it. In that case, Conor Gallagher can find himself in the starting line-up as Mateo Kovacic continues his recovery.
Leeds took the risk of hurrying their star striker Patrick Bamford into the playing eleven against Southampton and paid the due price of it. The Englishman suffered an injury in his adductor in the 27th minute and was substituted by Daniel James. A young 20-year-old Joe Gelhardt, who recently recovered from his leg injury, may get the opportunity to start the encounter.
Liam Cooper also recovered from his Achilles injury and the centre-back can replace Robin Koch among the starters. However, Leeds will continue to miss the services of Junior Firpo, Luke Ayling and Stuart Dallas.
Predicted Starting XIs
Leeds (4-2-3-1): Illan Meslier; Rasmus Kristensen, Liam Cooper, Diego Llorente, Pascal Struijk; Tyler Adams, Marc Roca; Jack Harrison, Rodrigo Moreno, Brenden Aaronson; Joe Gelhardt
Chelsea (3-5-2): Edouard Mendy; Reece James, Thiago Silva, Kalidou Koulibaly; Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Conor Gallagher, Jorginho, Mason Mount, Marc Cucurella; Kai Havertz, Raheem Sterling
Prediction
Although both teams share the same number of points, Chelsea holds a slight advantage owing to their superior recent record against Leeds. But, with home advantage backing them, we predict Leeds to force out a draw against Chelsea with the final scoreline reading 2-2.