YEP-juryen om kampen:
DAVID WATKINS
Norwich City visit Elland Road for what looks like the game of the season; the top two going head to head in front of a sell-out crowd, live on TV.
We may be premature building it up like that but it’s hard to see, with 17 games left, how either side will fall away now.
Neither side is in the imperious form they showed in the autumn though, with Leeds having won three of their last six and the Canaries just one.
Away from home, though, Norwich are second only to Leeds in points won and it will be a battle for the ball with these two sides being first (Leeds) and third (Norwich) in the average possession table.
Only Middlesbrough have conceded fewer goals on their travels; the Canaries conceding less than one goal per game away from Carrow Road.
A win for Leeds would be a huge statement to the rest of the Championship and would be a major boost to our confidence, while a draw would maintain the status quo.
Fingers crossed we’ll make that statement.
Prediction: Leeds United 3 Norwich City 1.
ANDY RHODES
It’s been a while since a Leeds fixture had this much riding on it. The game offers ‘six points’, a renewed rivalry and a throwback to that infamous League-One promotion battle. This game is big.
Despite the pressure, both sides will fancy themselves. Leeds have lost just one game out of six against the rest of the current top six, taking 13 points in the process.
Norwich, meanwhile, have lost four and taken six points.
The Canaries still have a fear factor about them but Marcelo Bielsa won’t let it bother him. Instead he will be looking to build on the positives taken from last week’s win at Rotherham, and particularly a second half where everything seemed to come together.
Unlike the Millers, Norwich like the ball in their possession and won’t sit back waiting for Leeds to break them down. Instead it will be open, end to end and nerve racking.
Must-win is a somewhat overused phrase, but this game really is just that.
Prediction: Leeds United 2 Norwich City 2.
MATTHEW EVANS
Oh, the big one. A top-of-the-table clash between first and second on the Sky Bet Championship ladder.
It must have been a while since Elland Road hosted one but, depending on how things go, there’s scope for more than one in the back end of this season as we host Sheffield United and West Brom in the coming months.
Norwich is a club that has somehow got under the skin of Leeds fans.
They led the way out of League 1 and have escaped the Championship a couple of times while we have languished, all while taking talent like Johnson, Howson, Snodgrass and Becchio out of our grasp.
That, combined with a full house, an evening kick-off and the lingering interest in ‘Spygate’ sets us up for an electric atmosphere and the sort of occasion that has been sorely missed for so long.
Truthfully, anything could happen but, based on both teams liking to attack and each club’s form going into the game, a score draw is maybe most likely.
Prediction: Leeds United 2 Norwich City 2.
KEITH INGHAM
They don’t come much bigger than this: first versus second in the Championship and the chance for Leeds to put a massive marker down if they claim three points tomorrow evening at a sold-out Elland Road.
I’m really looking forward to seeing these two teams ‘lock horns’. Norwich City are a totally different proposition to the team that Leeds beat comprehensively at Carrow Road earlier in the season.
The 3-0 win over City was one of the highlights of the start to the season but they have come through a difficult period and have some great young players and, in Teemu Pukki, they have a striker that definitely knows where the back of the net is. Daniel Farke is an excellent coach and he will be very keen to get revenge for the earlier defeat by Bielsa’s table toppers.
I’m going for a Leeds win by the odd goal in three. I can’t see Leeds stopping them scoring but with the partisan crowd behind them I hope it will be enough to spur them on to grab three of the most important points this season.
Should be a cracker!
Prediction: Leeds United 2 Norwich City 1.
MIKE GILL
It’s the first time back at Elland Road since the dismantling of Derby County and what a game to come home to.
This eagerly awaited fixture has the added spice of a bit of ‘bad blood’ between the sides.
First of all there was the attempted emasculation with the pink dressing room walls at Carrow Road and, more recently, the revelation that Norwich City are one of the signatories to the letter of complaint about ‘Spygate’.
More importantly, the Canaries are a serious and credible challenger to the top spot which United are guarding so jealously.
Teemu Pukki has been a revelation leading their attack and they have a similar habit to the Whites in that Norwich never seem to accept that they are beaten.
These facts lead to the conclusion that this encounter should be an absolute cracker which is almost too close to call.
It could be argued that a draw would be sufficient as it will maintain the points difference but United’s home advantage should edge it.
Prediction: Leeds United 2 Norwich City 1.
SHAUN SMITH
It’s Norwich, it’s the game of the century and there’s a chance to win really big prizes. Most fans this week have been trying to guess the true worth of Daniel James and it appears Swansea have gone way over the top in their estimate.
This weekend’s contest sees the customary three points inflated to six but in truth it is the gap to third place that decides whether Leeds United will win the grandest prize of all.
It will be great to pluck the Canaries’ feathers, they’re chirping to the Football League has hardly endeared them in these parts but it is a game to be treated like any other and like any other game Leeds United will be seeking a victory.
The boy Pukki is pukka we are told and Norwich have a smattering of players who could hurt us but with proper grown-ups beginning to appear on the United bench and with the crowd ramping up the atmosphere, the Whites should have enough to establish a buffer zone at the top of the table. This will be exciting and with goals in both sides I’m going for an unusual score.
Prediction: Leeds United 4 Norwich City 2.
Read more at:
https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/football/leeds-united/yep-jury-chance-for-leeds-united-to-lay-down-a-promotion-marker-at-sold-out-elland-road-1-9568900
