Leeds United must survive another game without Gabriel Gudmundsson and another two without Noah Okafor. Left-back Gudmundsson is still nursing the hamstring injury he picked up at Wembley in the FA Cup semi-final.
The Swede missed last Friday’s win over Burnley as a result of the setback, and the initial expectation was that he would also be out for Monday’s clash against Tottenham Hotspur - and it has transpired that he is indeed unavailable. So Daniel Farke could keep the same back line which started against the Clarets.
That sees James Justin start on the left and Jayden Bogle occupy the right with Joe Rodon, Jaka Biol and Pascal Struijk centrally guarding Karl Darlow. Meanwhile, at the other end, Okafor has injured his calf and is out for the next two games, including the final home game with Brighton & Hove Albion.
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Okafor is the most in-form attacker Leeds have at the moment, having scored six times in his last seven Premier League appearances. Since the start of February, he has also bagged three assists across all competitions.
His absence means Brenden Aaronson will come back on the left of the two behind the 13-goal Dominic Calvert-Lewin as Leeds try to expose the space behind Pedro Porro, who is expected to be encouraged to attack amid Tottenham’s need for three points.
Okafor's injury impacts midfield selection. The in-form Ao Tanaka will deservedly start next to Ethan Ampadu in deeper midfield with Anton Stach pushed slightly further ahead, being part of the duo behind Calvert-Lewin - who last week scored his second open play goal of 2026 - in a 3-4-2-1 formation.
In such a game Farke might have wanted to lean on Ilia Gruev to steady the midfield away from home but the Bulgarian has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a meniscus knee injury picked up in training ahead of the Bournemouth clash.
Sean Longstaff is perhaps the closest in profile to Gruev, aside from Ampadu, but the summer signing has not started a Premier League game since November. Farke may have opted to drop Stach further back should Okafor have been available on the left - but this seems less likely now.
As for Leeds, they could have safety secured by kick-off should West Ham lose to Arsenal. If they manage to win or draw, then Leeds can take themselves over the line by matching or beating the Hammers' result.
Predicted XI: Darlow; Rodon, Bijol, Struijk; Bogle, Ampadu, Tanaka, Justin; Aaronson, Stach; Calvert-Lewin.