Everton vs Leeds United preview: Team news, lineups, prediction
Leeds United return to Premier League action when they travel to the Hill Dickinson Stadium to face Everton on Monday.
Daniel Farke is doing an excellent job at Elland Road after many fans called for him to be sacked in the early stages of the season.
Leeds sit 16th in the Premier League table and have maintained an eight-point gap over the relegation zone and West Ham.
They take on an Everton side that will be buoyed by their 1-0 win over Aston Villa on 18 January.
MOT Leeds News highlights everything you need to know ahead of the match.
Preview
Leeds beat Fulham 1-0 at Elland Road on 17 January to boost their survival hopes under Farke.
Lukas Nmecha scored a 91st-minute winner to send the Leeds fans into delirium and extend their run of just one loss in nine league matches.
During that run, they’ve claimed valuable draws away to Sunderland and Liverpool, and they’re in for another tough test at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Everton stunned Villa by beating them at Villa Park in their last outing, and they currently sit in 10th.
However, David Moyes’ side have been wildly inconsistent at times, and they haven’t won at home since 6 December.
As a result, Monday’s clash represents a promising opportunity for the Whites to claim just their second away win of the season.
Form guide
Everton (last six games all comps): W D D L W D
Leeds (last six games all comps): W W L D D D
Head-to-head
Leeds beat Everton 1-0 at Elland Road in their first game of the season.
Nmecha’s late penalty sealed all three points for Farke’s side on their return to the top flight, and they’ll be looking to complete the league double over the Toffees on 26 January.
However, Everton are unbeaten in the five meetings with Leeds before the opening-day defeat.
Overall, it’s the Peacocks that have the edge, winning 53 of the 123 matches between both teams.
Leeds last beat Everton away from home in November 2020, and they’ll have to be at their best if they wish to end that streak.
Team news and predicted lineups
Farke confirmed that Jaka Bijol remains injured with a hamstring issue, leaving Leeds light on options at the back.
James Justin will likely fill in at right centre-back, while Nmecha could return to the team up front in place of Noah Okafor.
Gabriel Gudmundsson is a doubt for the clash, although Farke hopes he’ll be fit in time to play.
Facundo Buonanotte signed for Leeds on loan in the January window, and although he has impressed in training, a start against Everton may come too soon.
As for Moyes’ side, Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye are back in contention following their exploits at AFCON.
Jack Grealish and Jarrad Branthwaite are ruled out, although Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has made a return to light first-team training.
Everton predicted XI: Pickford; Patterson, O’Brien, Tarkowski, Mykolenko; Gueye, Garner; Ndiaye, Armstrong, McNeil; Barry
Leeds predicted XI: Darlow; Justin, Rodon, Struijk; Bogle, Aaronson, Ampadu, Gruev, Gudmundsson; Nmecha, Calvert-Lewin
Prediction: Everton 1-1 Leeds
It’s an incredibly tough contest to call, although it would be foolish to immediately dismiss Leeds.
Their away form is concerning, and they need to start registering wins on their travels if they want to comfortably avoid relegation.
However, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin in fine form, they always have a chance of grabbing a result against the odds.
| Stat | Calvert-Lewin |
| Appearances | 20 |
| Goals | 9 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Shots | 42 |
| Expected goals | 8.19 |
In addition to this, the Toffees haven’t adapted to their new home with ease, and points dropped to Wolves and Brentford in recent weeks give the Whites some hope.
A draw seems like the most likely outcome, and Leeds fans will ultimately be happy if that’s the case as they edge closer towards securing Premier League survival.
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