Leeds United are preparing to take on Crystal Palace at Elland Road on Sunday, with the two teams going into the game in contrasting moods
Daniel Farke’s side are high on confidence after a 4-1 win over Newcastle United on Monday night, extending their unbeaten start to the Premier League season.
Crystal Palace are struggling after losing three of their opening four Premier League games and have conceded goals at an alarming rate under new manager Pierre Sage.
They beat Lech Poznan 4-0 at Selhurst Park in the Europa League on Thursday night, but more importantly, one of their most important players returned to action.
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Crystal Palace star forward returns just in time to face Leeds
One reason Palace have struggled at the start of the season is that several key players are missing due to injuries.
Ismaila Sarr was denied a move to Liverpool toward the end of the transfer window, and the winger has been recovering from an injury, which has kept him out for weeks.
The forward returned to action in the Europa League clash, coming on from the bench in the 73rd minute on Thursday night after returning to training earlier this week.
He will need some time to build match sharpness, but this is a huge boost for Palace as they prepare for a tough test against Leeds at Elland Road on Sunday.
It is unclear whether Sage will throw Sarr into the starting eleven this weekend or continue easing him back into action by naming him on the bench.
Striker Eddie Nketiah also returned from an injury he sustained a fortnight ago and scored in the win over Lech Poznan on Thursday night.
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Leeds cannot take Palace lightly
Sarr’s return is major news as the Palace attack looks far more potent with the winger’s presence, and he will cause problems on Sunday if he starts.
Leeds are riding high on confidence, but they cannot afford to take Palace lightly just because they have made a poor start to the season. The Eagles still have players who can cause serious damage.
The question is whether their confidence has recovered enough to handle the pressure of playing at Elland Road against an in-form Leeds side on Sunday.
If Leeds manage to get an early goal, there is a huge chance that they will run away with the game against Palace, given their current form.
