Leeds United: Ethan Ampadu makes Championship table admission after Middlesbrough thriller
Leeds United defender Ethan Ampadu admits he will not even look at the Championship table until after the end of the season.
The Whites went second in the league after a dramatic 4-3 win over Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium on Tuesday (23 April).
It was a victory that left Daniel Farke’s men second in the table with two games to go, albeit third-place Ipswich Town have a game in hand in a thrilling race for promotion.
But Ampadu, speaking to Sky Sports in quotes reported by LeedsLive, said he is not concerned by league positions at this stage.
“There are still two massive games to go,” he said.
“We don’t really want to look at the table until after May 4. We know there is still a lot of hard work ahead of us. We are happy with the result and now it is full focus on Friday.”
Leeds United edge ahead of Ipswich Town in Championship promotion race
Ampadu’s comments come during a pivotal and potentially season-defining week in the Championship promotion hunt.
League leaders Leicester City host fourth-placed Southampton at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday night (23 April), where a defeat would all but end the Saints’ hopes of automatic promotion.
Thanks to their 4-3 win on Monday, a defeat for Southampton tonight would leave Leeds six points ahead of Russell Martin’s side with just two games remaining, and a much healthier goal difference means the Whites would be in an almost unassailable position to the side in fourth.
Daniel Farke’s men will be back in action again on Friday night (26 April), when they make the trip to the capital to face Queen’s Park Rangers, giving them the opportunity to go four points clear of Ipswich, who do not play until 24 hours later.
There is a scenario whereby Leeds could even have promotion in the bag before the final day of the season on May 4 but that would require Ipswich to lose their next two games and Leeds to beat QPR.
The Leeds boss will hope to have Daniel James available for selection at Loftus Road, but early signs do not look encouraging for the Welshman following a late blow to the ribs at the Riverside.
In other Leeds United news, Patrick Bamford has come in for criticism following a “nasty” incident in the win over Middlesbrough.
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