Leeds United are preparing to host Sunderland at Elland Road on Monday night in a big Championship clash under the lights. The two sides played out a 2-2 draw at the Stadium of Light in October but a lot of water has flown under the bridge since then. The Black Cats have remained in the race for automatic promotion but seem to have an outside chance of finishing in the top two while Leeds are flying at the moment. The Whites sit at the summit of the league table and have not conceded a goal in their last six league games. At home, they look imperious and are the best bet to beat any team in the league at Elland Road.
Daniel Farke’s men seem to have picked up pace and shifted gears in the last couple of weeks. They are looking at a different level and seem poised to earn automatic promotion to the Premier League.
Leeds have scored 13 goals in their last three games without conceding one. They have not conceded in six league games and have further tightened up at the back.
Farke will not let his players relax even if they look to be on their way to promotion and rival managers are tipping them to win the Championship this season.
The Leeds manager is aware that things could go wrong soon and two tough games against Sunderland and Sheffield United will test his team.
Sunderland legend Gary Bennett has claimed that Leeds will find out that Sunderland are a better team than the ones they faced on Wearside earlier in the season.
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Sunderland sit fourth in the league and are five points off the automatic promotion spots. They are far better than the teams below them but only have an outside chance of finishing in the top two.
The Black Cats need a positive result on Monday night and even a draw might not be useful for Sunderland if they want to close the gap to the top.
Bennett admitted that Leeds were by far the best team that visited the Stadium of Light this season and they look even better at this stage of the season.
However, the Sunderland legend insisted that even the Black Cats are better and the team look more like a unit at this stage of the campaign compared to October.
“Leeds are the best team that we’ve seen at the Stadium of Light. They’re the best team we’ve come up against but I think we’ve developed”, Bennett said on BBC Radio Newcastle.
“I think we’re a better team now than when we played them. I think we’re much more of a threat and we’ve got a lot more understanding.
“Look at the starting eleven… it’s maybe one or two changes here and there.”
The Sunderland legend is in for a rude awakening on Monday night
Sunderland are a good team; you don’t sit fourth in the table and contention for promotion if you are not a good team and Leeds will have a tough game at Elland Road on Monday night.
Bennett is also right to say that Sunderland do look better compared to the early part of the season and are coming to Elland Road on the back of some solid form.
However, they will be facing a Leeds side who have looked imperious at home and have not conceded a single goal in their last six Championship games.
They have scored 42 goals at home, by far the best scoring record at home this season than any other team in the Championship, and have dropped just seven points in 16 games.
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Leeds have not lost at home since Burnely defeated them in the early part of the campaign and have looked more and more dangerous at Elland Road as the season progressed.
Sunderland have a decent record on the road this season but they have not faced a team like Leeds away from home, the kind of challenge that has scared the best this season.
Bennett is in for a shock if he believes Sunderland are in a position to win at Leeds and he and some of the Black Cats fans are in for a rude awakening.
We are also better and will try not to allow a silly mistake of giving you a goal in the dying minutes. You got away with two points you never deserved fella. See you Monday and thanks for the three points