(Credit: Imago)

Richie Mills

Fri 3 April 2026 7:40, UK

Leeds United have been told by Paul Merson that an FA Cup run may hurt their chances of Premier League survival ahead of facing West Ham.

After beating three Championship sides to reach the quarter-finals of this famous old competition, Leeds have their first Premier League opponent in the Hammers on Sunday.

Daniel Farke suggested Leeds will name a strong line-up for their clash at London Stadium but for the 49ers Enterprises, staying in the lucrative Premier League has to be the priority.

Leeds sit four points clear of the relegation zone with seven matches to play, with their next league game against in-form rivals Manchester United.

But before then, Leeds face an intriguing FA Cup clash with fellow strugglers West Ham. Indeed, Merson thinks this one will go to the wire.

Leeds United would choose Premier League survival ‘all day long’

Former Arsenal and Aston Villa player thinks victory for either side on Sunday will be big for their respective fans, with a trip to Wembley guaranteed.

However, West Ham’s next Premier League match is at home to bottom-of-the-table Wolves, so Nuno Espirito Santo may prioritise that one.

And although Leeds are scoreless in their last four matches, Merson thinks the “shackles will be off” for this encounter.

Predicting a West Ham penalty shootout win after a 1-1 draw, he told Sportskeeda: “If someone told these two teams they had to choose between getting into the semi-finals of the FA Cup or staying up in the Premier League, they would choose the latter all day long!

“This is a difficult game to predict. I don’t see a lot between these two sides at the moment. Whoever wins this game, will get momentum for the run-in until the end of the Premier League season.

“West Ham have a huge cup final coming up against Wolves next Friday. They need to win that game to give them the best chance of staying up. Leeds, who have a four-point lead over West Ham in the table, host Manchester United in the next gameweek.

“Whoever wins this game, it will be big for the fans. But they will be playing the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley on a weekend when their relegation rivals will be in action a league game. So I’m not sure if having an extra game helps in this context because the pressure will be on.

“Leeds haven’t been scoring a lot of goals lately but I expect the shackles to be off in this game. I’m backing this game to go to penalties and then West Ham to nick the win in the shoot-out.”

Leeds may have to adapt amid injury concerns

As detailed in MOT Leeds News’ predicted FA Cup line-up above, Farke’s side have a few injury concerns heading into this FA Cup quarter-final.

The Leeds boss outlined how striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin and midfielder Anton Stach have some minor issues after being away on international duty for England and Germany, respectively.

He told reporters on Thursday: “Dominic ended yesterday’s training session earlier because he felt some hamstring problems. Same today, not involved so a question mark behind his availability.”

The German said he hoped it was just a minor problem, while adding: “Anton Stach was struggling with some hip problems yesterday, but that shouldn’t be a problem.”

So, how strong will Farke go? Players such as Joe Rodon and Ethan Ampadu may be in need of a rest after playing for Wales over the international break but they may want to be involved amid this cup opportunity.

But an injury blow could really hurt their survival chances. As with many things, a balancing act needs to be struck ahead of the crucial Premier League run-in.