New Leeds United crop must forge their own path as Newcastle clash looms
Leeds United will open themselves up to a new experience if they are to beat Newcastle United on Monday.
Daniel Farke and Co. will be licking their wounds after a massively frustrating 6-3 defeat against Chelsea.
That has seen the Whites knocked out of the Carabao Cup in the third round.
It had been declared as something to be taken seriously and now the cup run is over before it truly began.
There is now added importance on the Premier League as a clash with the Magpies at Elland Road awaits.
Things certainly won't be easy especially as the Leeds squad will have to tap into something that hasn't been seen for years in LS11.
When did Leeds last beat Newcastle United?
It was majorly frustrating against the Magpies last year with a 4-3 defeat and a 0-0 draw.
There will be a desire to right those wrongs and pick up a big three points this time around.
That won't be easy given that the West Yorkshire outfit haven't won when facing Newcastle in five years.
The last win came at St James Park back in January 2021 as goals from Raphinha and Jack Harrison helped secure a 2-1 result.
That is a long time to go without victory against an opponent - albeit Leeds have spent time in the second tier since then.
It has been so long that the whole squad has changed.
A starting XI of Illan Meslier, Luke Ayling, Diego Llorente, Liam Cooper, Ezgjan Alioski, Kalvin Phillips, Stuart Dallas, Raphinha, Harrison, Rodrigo and Patrick Bamford all started.
Pascal Struijk, Mateusz Klich and Tyler Roberts came on while Kiko Casilla, Jamie Shackleton, Leif Davis, Pablo Hernandez, Helder Costa and Ian Poveda watched from the bench.
All of these names have moved on from LS11, proving how much of an uphill task the new crop of Leeds players will have against the Magpies.
How can Leeds United finally win vs Newcastle?
There were genuine fears that this season could feature a relegation battle in the north east.
It has, so far, been the complete opposite for Matthias Jaissle as he is yet to taste defeat as Newcastle boss.
Leeds will be keen to be the first to inflict that feeling, but it will be a challenge.
The Geordies' backline is there to be gotten at after conceding six goals in five games this season.
So the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Noah Okafor must be on top of their game.
The same can be said about the back three to keep Newcastle at bay having scored 10 goals so far this campaign.
It won't be an easy scale to balance, but if Leeds can win, it will see this new crop forge their own path after a total refresh at Elland Road.