Leeds United vs Sunderland preview: Team news, lineups, prediction
Leeds United will be desperate to return to winning ways when they host Sunderland in the Premier League on Tuesday.
Daniel Farke‘s side have been phenomenal at Elland Road, but they came unstuck in Saturday’s 1-0 loss to Man City.
Despite suffering their fourth home loss of the campaign, they remain six points clear of the relegation zone, and they now have the perfect chance to extend that gap.
Sunderland haven’t won in their last four Premier League matches, and Regis Le Bris’ side will be desperate to stop the rot by securing a first win at Elland Road in 20 years.
MOT Leeds News highlights everything you need to know ahead of Tuesday’s match.
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Form guide
Leeds (last six games all comps): L D W D W L
Sunderland (last six games all comps): D L W L L W
Head-to-head
In the reverse fixture this season, Simon Adingra opened the scoring for Sunderland, before Dominic Calvert-Lewin equalised early in the second half after Brenden Aaronson’s low cross.
Although the 1-1 draw was a good point for Leeds at the time, they have often gotten the better of the Black Cats in the past.
Sunderland are winless in their last three league visits to Elland Road since a 3-0 win in September 2006.
Their most recent game there saw them lose 2-1 in February 2025, with Pascal Struijk scoring a brace for the hosts in the latter stages of the match.
Overall, Leeds have beaten Sunderland 41 times, lost 35 meetings and drawn 22 matches.
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Team news and predicted lineups
Noah Okafor is out with a hamstring problem, but that is Farke’s only major concern when it comes to injuries.
Brenden Aaronson wasn’t at the races against Man City, meaning Farke may opt to go for a strike partnership of Lukas Nmecha and Calvert-Lewin.
Ilia Gruev was also underwhelming, and Ao Tanaka could start his first top-flight match in 2026 as a result.
As for Sunderland, Granit Xhaka has just returned to the side, but the likes of Nordi Mukiele, Brian Brobbey and Reinildo are all unavailable.
Leeds predicted XI: Perri; Justin, Rodon, Struijk; Bogle, Ampadu, Gruev, Stach, Gudmundsson; Nmecha, Calvert-Lewin
Sunderland predicted XI: Roefs; Geertruida, Ballard, Alderete, Hume; Xhaka, Diarra, Sadiki; Talbi, Le Fee, Mayenda
How I predict Leeds vs Sunderland to finish
Both sides were promoted from the Championship last season, and it’s fair to say that the Black Cats have been just about more impressive.
However, they’ve only won four of their last 17 league games, which shows how far they’ve dropped off from a fantastic start.
As for Leeds, they’ve only lost three games since the start of December, and Tuesday’s clash is the start of a favourable run of fixtures.
Given their record under the lights at Elland Road, it would seem hard to argue against Farke’s men securing all three points.
Therefore, Leeds securing a narrow 2-1 win could be the most likely outcome.
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