Credit: Imago

Cameron Smith

Thu 2 April 2026 12:10, UK

Leeds United have opened themselves up to serious embarrassment with the timing of their friendly match with Manchester United.

The Whites have announced a clash with their rivals ahead of the summer, set to take place on Wednesday 12 August, at Dublin’s iconic Croke Park Stadium.

Daniel Farke’s side also played in Ireland last summer as they drew 1-1 draw with AC Milan at the smaller Aviva Stadium.

With Leeds and Man United having a vast number of Irish supporters, the announcement makes sense.

However, Leeds are vulnerable to a serious blunder if the worst-case scenario were to arise in the season’s final weeks.

Leeds are vulnerable to embarrassment if survival bid proves unsuccessful

After an excellent run throughout the festive period and early days of 2026, Premier League survival was beginning to seem a formality for Leeds, with a six-point gap to the drop zone forged after the 3-0 win against Nottingham Forest in February.

Since then, though, Farke’s side have stumbled – let off by the poor form of Nottingham Forest and Tottenham behind them, before the Garibaldi shocked Spurs with a 3-0 win on the eve of the international break.

While relegation would be a huge disappointment given the position Leeds found themselves in just over a month ago, it is still a possibility that cannot be ignored.

With the Manchester United clash scheduled for 12 August, next season’s Championship is set to commence just two days later.

In the announcement, the Whites did confirm that the fixture will not be staged following relegation, or if they are competing in the Community Shield.

However, they have left themselves open to a serious embarrassment, if by chance they had to postpone the clash due to relegation – something that supporters are desperate to avoid after the previous spell in the top flight came to an abrupt end after an excellent start in the division.

Leeds entering make-or-break territory

Heading into the international break, fortunes completely shifted at Elland Road, with Farke’s side looking toothless in the final third, without anything to write home about in possession.

This has been exacerbated by a clear performance uptick for Forest under Vitor Pereira, while West Ham have seriously improved in recent months.

Tottenham behind them have also announced the appointment of Roberto De Zerbi, who quite frankly cannot do much worse than Igor Tudor.

It is now incredibly congested at the bottom, with three sides all having their eye on leapfrogging Leeds and climbing the standings.

Leeds face West Ham this Sunday, as the sides battle for a spot in the FA Cup semi-finals, and the West Yorkshire outfit simply have to use this as a launchpad.

Not only would a Wembley reward be earned, but the crucial momentum would be gained via a result against a direct relegation rival.

Leeds need to find form, or they risk squandering what was a great position to be in last month.