The talk of promotion to the Premier League are being conducted in hushed tones inside Elland Road. Leeds United do not want to tempt fate, especially after last season when they became the first side not to get promoted despite bagging 90 or more points in the Championship in more than two decades. Leeds are outperforming the side from last year and are on course to equalling or breaking their points haul from the 2023/24 campaign. The way the season is shaping up, 90 or more points should be good enough to guarantee one of the top two spots and automatic promotion. Leeds are aware that they can’t afford to relax just yet and the club have a history of complicating things. However, there is a margin for error and Leeds have afforded themselves that luxury by being the most consistent side in the Championship this season.
Leeds United have managed to build a five-point lead over teams outside the top two and have a two-point lead over second-place Sheffield United after 31 games.
Last season’s playoff final heartbreak is an aching memory for everyone at Elland Road and the players are determined to ensure that they sue up promotion by finishing in the top two.
They are well on course to doing exactly that and at this stage of the season, it would take a loss of form of catastrophic proportions for the Whites to not finish in the top two spots.
However, Leeds have a history of being ‘Leedsy’ and complicating things so their fans would always be weary of counting their chickens too early in the season.
But looking at the league table and how the other teams are performing, Leeds definitely have a margin for error, which they have earned by being remarkably consistent this season.
How many games can Leeds United lose from here and still earn automatic promotion?
The good news for Leeds, unlike last season, they are not being forced to compete against juggernauts such as Leicester City and Ipswich Town this year.
Sheffield United, Burnley and Sunderland are all good teams but they have shown inconsistencies and the Blades even earned the ire of Chris Wilder last weekend despite winning 2-1 at home against Portsmouth.
None of the teams have matched Leeds’ consistency and throughout the season, Farke’s men have only grown stronger by further tightening up their defence.
If we take the 90-point tally from last season as the benchmark Leeds need to hit to ensure that they finish in the top two, the Whites need another 24 points from their remaining 15 league games.
Eight more wins or seven wins and three draws should be enough to get the Whites back to the Premier League at the end of the season.
Leeds can afford to lose five more games, which is close to double the number of matches they have lost in the league thus far, and still get promoted to the top flight.
At this stage of the season, Leeds had 63 points last year and they lost four more games in the next 15, which pushed them out of the top two.
If the 90-point mark is the promotion clincher this year, Leeds have the latitude to lose one more game than last season and still earn their way back to the Premier League.
The next three games are going to be massive
Leeds are on a long unbeaten run in the Championship and scored victories over two teams in the last week or so who were in decent form in Cardiff and Coventry City respectively.
However, Leeds have a tricky run of games until the end of February and there is a decent chance that they could drop a few more points in the next couple of weeks.
A trip to Watford is going to be tough tonight and Tom Cleverley has already fired the warning shots at Farke and his team. Sunderland will visit Elland Road next Monday night to try and close the gap with the Championship leaders.
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A trip to Bramall Lane to face Sheffield United a week later is going to be one of the biggest games of the season for Leeds. Only two points separate the two sides and there is no love lost between these Yorkshire rivals.
However, Leeds have afforded themselves the luxury of dropping a few points by being a model of consistency this season and all we can hope is that they don’t become too ‘Leedsy’ in the final stretch.
