Premier League: Leeds in Bid to Banish the Blues!

Leeds United vs Chelsea

One of football’s fiercest rivalries just got fiercer folks, because Premier League: Leeds United vs Chelsea, on Wednesday night at Elland Road, is as big as it gets.

Leeds and Chelsea fans have never been the best of buddies, with a rivalry spanning over half a century when the two clubs met in an infamously violent FA Cup final. The beautiful game has changed in the intervening years, in many ways for the better, but don’t expect either team to hold back when they meet in front of a packed and passionate Leeds crowd.

The stakes could hardly be higher.

While Chelsea still need points to guarantee their place in the 2022/23 Champions League, Leeds need a result or two to prolong their stay in the top flight. The Premier League 2022 betting odds suggest a two way shootout between Leeds and Burnley to avoid the drop, though Everton are definitely still in the mix despite a recent upturn in form. 

Leeds head coach Jesse Marsch has three games to save the season and it all starts on Wednesday night with the visit of Chelsea.  

The SBOTOP odds are on the side of the visitors, with Thomas Tuchel’s Blues at 1.63 to win, while Leeds are at 5.22 and the draw at 3.49. But the vast majority of a near 40,000 crowd will be squarely behind the Whites. 

The two teams come into the game on the back of poor results, Chelsea drawing at home the Wolves while Leeds lost away to Arsenal, and both head coaches are looking for an immediate improvement.       

Talking Points

Dallas and Ayling out for Leeds but Cooper could return

Leeds’ trip to Arsenal was billed as a must win game for both teams but it could hardly have started worse for Marsch’s men as the Gunners raced into a two goal lead and then Leeds skipper Luke Ayling was red carded for a two footed foul on Gabriel Martinelli.

That act means the end of the season for Ayling and, following the horror injury suffered by Stuart Dallas in the recent defeat to Manchester City, Marsch has a headache in defence. With two such influential players out Leeds fans will be hoping and praying that club captain Liam Cooper will be fit to make a start. He pulled out with a knee injury in the warm up against the Sky Blues and the head coach was hopeful he would make the team against Arsenal, but Cooper didn’t feature in the Leeds squad. He may be ready for the next challenge but, at the moment, the club remains tight lipped.  

Leeds have suffered an injury ravaged campaign and the return of midfield lynchpin Kalvin Phillips has been a boost. And Marsch will continue to encourage his team to attack and Raphinha, with ten goals, remains Leeds’ biggest goal threat.  

Chelsea’s third place is under serious threat

Much of the recent Premier League 2022 news has been dominated by the sale of Chelsea and, over the weekend, a consortium led by LA Dodgers part owner Todd Boehly signed a contract to buy the club at a price of £4.25bn. The deal is yet to be ratified by the government and the Premier League but fans will be hoping the saga is nearing its end.  

Results in recent weeks have been poor by Tuchel’s high standards, culminating in a limp display in a 1-0 defeat to Everton, a result to anger Leeds fans. The Blues need to rediscover that winning feeling before they slip out of the top three, and maybe even four. They were 2-1 ahead in their last game against Wolves, deep into stoppage time, but Conor Coady’s 97^th minute equaliser made it no wins in three for the Blues.

One bright note for Chelsea was a brace for striker Romelu Lukaku and he, alongside top scorer Mason Mount, will be a key player on Wednesday night.

History

Relations between Leeds and Chelsea have never been good, ever since the 1970 FA Cup final, won by Chelsea but billed as the most brutal game in English football.

Current referee Michael Oliver recently said he would have issued 11 red cards as the two teams played four hours of football which made Ayling’s two footed assault on Martinelli look like a tickle!  

More recently the matches have been less bloodthirsty and well contested in the Premier League era, with Chelsea just shading the head to heads by ten victories to eight and there have been eight draws.

Chelsea won the reverse fixture 3-3 while the two teams played out a 0-0 draw at Elland Road last term.

Recent form is identical with both teams winning two, drawing two and losing two of the last six 

Betting Tip

The last time Leeds beat Chelsea at Elland Road was in 2002, but the two teams have only met in West Yorkshire three times since then. It will be a tall order for Leeds against a clearly gifted Chelsea team in need of points; but they will give it their all…and we’ll see goals – of that I’m convinced.  

 

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