Yorkshire Evening Post

Leeds United's Saturday night visitors Brentford are sweating on the fitness of a key attacker for the Elland Road clash.

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Bees head coach Keith Andrews has revealed that attacking midfielder Mikkel Damsgaard, who scored two and made one in the recent madcap win over Burnley, has returned to training after sustaining a knock on Monday. Damsgaard went off after 72 minutes of the 2-2 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers and missed some training this week.

"Dams was on the grass today, which is obviously positive,” Andrews said. “We’ll give him every chance to see how he is for tomorrow.”

Brentford will be without full-backs Rico Henry and Aaron Hickey through hamstring problems. Vitaly Janelt [metatarsal] and Josh Dasilva [knee ligament] are out and both Fábio Carvalho and Antoni Milambo are out for the rest of the season with respective ACL injuries.

Leeds, however, have everyone fit and available other than the suspended Gabriel Gudmundsson for the vital Premier League clash. They will welcome a Bees side who have been in red-hot form on the road of late, with wins over Burnley, Newcastle United and Aston Villa.

“We’ve been on a really good run," said Andrews. “We’ve looked really calm and confident in what we’ve been doing. Whatever’s been thrown at us, we’ve dealt with it pretty well. The group are in a pretty good place. There will be a quiet, calm confidence about how we approach the game tomorrow.”

Elswhere in the relegation picture, Tottenham Hotspur have suffered a fresh blow with the news that first-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario needs surgery. The Italian has started each and every one of Spurs' 30 Premier League games to date. He didn't start the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Atletico Madrid, but was parachuted into the game after a nightmare start for back-up Antonín Kinský who conceded three inside 17 minutes and made two big mistakes.

A Spurs statement said: "We can confirm that Guglielmo Vicario will undergo surgery next week on a hernia. The minor procedure for the Italy international goalkeeper has been timed to have as minimal impact on our season as possible. Guglielmo will commence his rehabilitation with our medical staff immediately, and it is hoped that he could return to action within the next month."

Leeds United Under-21s returned to winning ways in York on Monday night.

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Young Leeds United goalkeeper Robbie Cook earned a clean sheet on his Under-21s debut last night in a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur.

Cook joined Leeds from Perth Glory in February 2025 and has had to remain patient, playing mostly at Under-18 level during his first year in Yorkshire. The 19-year-old was rewarded for his efforts with a place in Scott Gardner’s starting-XI on Monday, with Darryl Ombang on the bench fresh from confirmation of his youth loan to FC United of Manchester.

Rhys Chadwick scored the decisive goal midway through the second-half at the LNER Community Stadium in York, latching onto a cross from full-back Jayden Lienou, who impressed again. Australian Cook made a sublime first-half save to deny Tottenham’s James Wilson, one of several stops to keep things level before Leeds won it.

“Really buzzing with the result, obviously the clean sheet,” Cook told LUTV. “And to be fair, I didn’t perform too bad so I was pretty happy with that! The boys really put a good shift out there. It was really good.

“I am very happy with that debut. I have been working pretty hard to get an opportunity and it has taken a long time, but it has worked out so hopefully just keep going on from that.

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“I have really pushed myself day in, day out from the start, especially in the first season where I was injured the whole time. I just kept working and then obviously it has worked out.”

Leeds had lost consecutive games in Premier League 2 heading into Monday against West Ham and Sunderland, conceding eight goals in the process. And so the keeping of a clean sheet was of paramount importance, with Cook certainly playing his part in the victory.

Leeds United head coach on important U21s win

“It is really important to win after the run that we have had recently,” head coach Gardner added. “We have had some tough games clearly, with a young group, but a lot of character there and fairly comfortable throughout the game.

“It looked like we eradicated a lot of the problems this evening, so that should give them a lot of confidence going forward for the next three or four games that we have got.

“[Cook was] Excellent, really solid performance. He has had to be patient. We talked about sometimes you have to wait for your opportunity and he has done that and he has taken it with both hands, so fair play to him.”

Cook’s week got even better shortly after that clean sheet, with the goalkeeper called up to represent Australia Under-19s during the upcoming international break. He will be part of a squad that faces China twice later this month.

The former Leeds United youngster is now playing for a direct relegation rivals in Spurs.

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Leeds United academy graduate Archie Gray’s versatility looks set to be tested with a stint at centre-back when Tottenham Hotspur face Liverpool on Sunday.

Gray has already played in three different positions under new manager Igor Tudor, who himself has only been in charge for four games - losing all of them. The Croatian manager has stuck rigidly to a back-three formation despite seemingly endless injury issues, often forcing square pegs into round holes.

With Micky van de Ven suspended for Sunday’s trip to Anfield while Christian Romero and Joao Palhinha both suffered midweek concussions, Spurs have just two natural centre-backs. And the likelihood is Gray will take on a fourth new role under Tudor alongside Radu Dragusin and Kevin Danso.

“That's the problem,” Tudor said of Gray. “He needs to, every game, change the position, tomorrow again. Four games here, four positions for Archie Gray. He's an amazing player, but that's been that.

“Something's wrong. Beautiful guy, beautiful player. I didn't know him before so much, so from inside, he has my big respect.”

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Despite the regular change of role, Gray has impressed under Tudor in a period where few others can say the same. The Leeds academy graduate, who turned 20 this week, has been a rare shining light in North London for a team two points shy of his boyhood club and in serious relegation trouble.

Spurs boss on recent struggles

Spurs have conceded 14 goals during Tudor’s four-match reign and have a propensity to implode, conceding four goals inside 22 minutes at Atletico Madrid on Tuesday. There is already serious pressure on the firefighter manager, with reports this week suggesting work is already being done on a potential replacement.

“Like everything in life, you can choose how to see the situation,” Tudor added. “So, you can stay and cry or you can fight. You can be the victim or you can say I can change something. This is the message I want to start and what I told to the players.

“The bottle is always half empty or half full. Here there is nothing full, there is a lot of empty things but difficult moments don’t last forever. In the last period, a lot of things about what is the club, the problems, no one can do nothing and this like victim-ism, like we were victims.

“I said this morning to the players totally opposition things. We are the team and we are the staff. It’s all about us. All the bulls***, all the other things are bulls*** and sorry to use this word, but it’s on us.”

Spurs go to Liverpool on Sunday afternoon, by which time they could be in the bottom three. Although that would require West Ham Nottingham Forest to both win against Manchester City and Fulham, respectively. Leeds will have their own chance to pull clear of Gray’s side, with a two-point gap becoming five if they win at Crystal Palace earlier on Sunday.

Leeds United will have the chance to pile more pressure on Spurs before the season is over.

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Ex-Leeds United assistant coach Gus Poyet has warned another of his former clubs, Tottenham Hotspur, are in real danger of relegation this season.

Leeds are currently the best-placed of four teams fighting to avoid joining likely relegation candidates Wolves and Burnley in the bottom three. The Whites are 15th, three points ahead of West Ham and Nottingham Forest while two clear of Spurs.

Few expected the latter to be involved in such a scrap but having failed to pick up a single Premier League win in 2026, Spurs are swirling the drain. New manager Igor Tudor has lost all of his four matches in charge across all competitions amid calls for him to be axed already.

Poyet spent three years as a player at Spurs before coaching the North London outfit, for whom he left his assistant role at Leeds under Dennis Wise in 2007. The Uruguayan is therefore well-placed to understand how the current relegation scrap might be affecting both.

“Winning the Europa League and finishing 17th last season, that was an accident,” Poyet told the YEP of Spurs, via Gambling.com where users discover top online casinos. “This year is not an accident anymore. Now it's a problem, and the more you play with that situation, the more risk you have to go down.

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“So I think they need to be careful, very, very careful. It's a tricky one, but without any doubt, I think Tottenham are in danger from what I felt when I was at the stadium [during their recent defeat to Arsenal] watching the team.”

Of course, Leeds still have to travel to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for what is their third-last game of the season in May. Daniel Farke’s side have won just one away game all season but in Spurs, will face the Premier League’s second-worst team at home - better only than Burnley.

Leeds United can use Spurs toxicity to their advantage

Tottenham have not won a Premier League home game since early December and last week’s 3-1 defeat to Crystal Palace was a perfect example of how quickly things can unravel. Tudor’s side went 1-0 up on 34 minutes but by half-time were 3-1 down and reduced to 10 men.

The Tottenham Hotspur stadium has become toxic, with any setback or mistake met with audible groans and boos. Poyet believes visiting teams such as Leeds can use that to their advantage as the pressure piles up.

“I call them World Cup final games, massive ones,” he added. “It's worrying for everyone. For Leeds players to play at Elland Road, now is fantastic. For Tottenham to play at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, it's terrible. It's a massive difference.

“Leeds can take advantage of that depending on the situation because all players are not all the same mentally, and the atmosphere affects the place in a different way. So if you go there, score first or get through the first 30 minutes, it could be a nightmare for the local players. That's something that could be important for Leeds at that time.”

Leeds United currently sit two points above crisis-ridden Spurs in the Premier League table.

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Gary Neville believes it would be good for the Premier League if established teams are relegated amid pre-season worries over the fate of Leeds United.

Leeds were promoted from the Championship alongside Burnley and Sunderland but faced arguably a more difficult task than ever surviving. In each of the previous two seasons, all three newly-promoted sides went straight back down and many pre-season predictions pointed towards a repeat.

But while Burnley have struggled, Leeds and Sunderland currently sit outside the bottom three with the latter virtually safe following their 1-0 win at Elland Road last week. Daniel Farke’s side sit three points above 18th-placed West Ham, with Nottingham Forest and Tottenham Hotspur between the pair also.

Of those four candidates to join Burnley and Wolves, Spurs feel like they are in the biggest crisis with new manager Igor Tudor losing all of his four games in charge so far. The North London club are just one point clear of West Ham with Liverpool away this weekend.

“I must admit, seeing Tottenham go down, it wouldn’t be great for Tottenham fans, but it would be very good for the Premier League from a competitive perspective,” Neville told The Overlap. “The idea of Leeds staying up, Sunderland staying up, because I was worried that every club that came up would go straight back down again.”

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There is already huge pressure on Tudor, whose side are in free-fall with mounting disciplinary problems and no clear route to points. The Croatian admitted after a 5-2 midweek Champions League defeat at Atletico Madrid that everything is going against Spurs.

Gary Neville Spurs relegation verdict amid Leeds United hope

“The Premier League doesn’t necessarily need Tottenham to go down; they need clubs other than the ones who have come up to go down,” Neville added. “It would be sad if they went down, but maybe they’ve had it coming. If you’re going to make another [managerial] change, that for me needs to be today or tomorrow, because you don’t wait.”

Leeds still have to go to Tottenham, of course, with their trip to North London marking the third-to-last game of the season. Daniel Farke and his side will hope to have increased their three-point cushion on the drop zone by that point but it looks set to be a huge game regardless.

Despite last week’s 1-0 defeat to Sunderland halving their six-point cushion, Leeds are still deemed more likely to survive than Spurs, Nottingham Forest or West Ham. That is due in part to the fact they have a more favourable run-in on paper compared to all rivals.

Farke’s side travel to Crystal Palace this weekend before the visit of Brentford to Elland Road before the March international break. That is the first of four more home games which also includes Wolves, Burnley and Brighton.

The former CEO and managing director of Premier League clubs believes Leeds United would be far less impacted by relegation than the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United but the drop would delay 49ers Enterprises' plans.

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Christian Purslow, formerly the CEO of Aston Villa and the managing director at both Liverpool and Chelsea, has been assessing the prospect of relegation for clubs fighting to avoid finishing 18th or below. With Wolves and Burnley almost certain to fall through the top flight's trap door, the final relegation place is currently occupied by West Ham on 28 points. Nottingham Forest sit just above the Hammers on goal difference, with Spurs one point ahead and Leeds three points clear in 15th.

Speaking on The Football Boardroom podcast he co-hosts with journalist Henry Winter, Purslow highlighted the fact that no one involved in the deal that saw Spurs borrow hundreds of millions to finance their £1bn-plus stadium was ever contemplating Championship football or its associated revenues. The idea of selling Spurs, he believes, would go out the window if they dropped into the second tier, until such a time as they returned to the Premier League.

"None of those bankers when that deal was done would have assumed that the borrower Tottenham Hotspur would ever be in the Championship, where revenues weren't £600m, £700m, but where revenues were £300m to £350m. Nobody realistically contemplated a relegation scenario where we're not talking about the difference between fourth and 15th place - £20m to £30m, we're talking about maybe £200m, £250m. Now what I'm looking at is this summer in a scenario of relegation, without doubt, those banks will want to see some equity invested by the owners. So not just not selling, but having to write a big check. That's what these owners will be thinking about today."

WATCH: Who MUST play at Crystal Palace and where is a summer upgrade needed?

When it comes to West Ham, Purslow pointed out that the club's recent accounts made it clear players will need to be sold, potentially alongside a serious injection of cash from shareholders, whether or not they are in the Premier League. Relegation would obviously only worsen the financial situation for the Hammers.

But while no one in the Leeds United fan base wants to hear that their club would be 'least impacted' by the drop, or even consider the idea of an immediate return to the Championship, Purslow says 49ers Enterprises' acceptance of that possibility should safeguard them from financial meltdown.

"I do think that the ownership group at Leeds' approach to coming back up last season and since has been quite cautious," he said.

"They have gotten into a situation where they are running the club with a base case assumption that they might be re relegated - to give it a terrible media name as if they are a yo-yo club. They stuck largely with the Championship squad. They stuck with Daniel Farke, who I think most people in the game didn't expect to last the full season. Let's face it, this season we had had two prior years where all three teams coming up have gone back down. So any prudent manager, responsible chief exec at Leeds would say we have to allow for that possibility. And I think therefore the only positive is that in terms of their investment in the wage bill, their investment in the playing squad has been such that it won't be as damaging."

Yet relegation never comes without a cost and alongside the potential loss of talented players, new stars who have become popular with the fanbase and potentially some of those so instrumental in promotion, Leeds could find themselves on the back foot off the pitch again. Just like Nottingham Forest, Purslow's view is that Leeds would have to delay their Elland Road redevelopment plans in the event of relegation. "It wouldn't surprise me if it got mothballed for another year if they go down," he added.

Leeds United’s battle for Premier League survival is paused until next weekend - ahead of which a new supercomputer is forecasting a relegation shocker in its new predicted final table and points.

Daniel Farke’s Whites put in a fine display in last Saturday evening’s hosting of title-chasing Manchester City only to suffer a 1-0 defeat but results elsewhere kept Leeds nine points clear of the dropzone.

United then had the chance to kick nine points clear of the bottom three with a victory from Tuesday night’s hosting of Sunderland but Farke’s side suffered a very disappointing defeat and the landscape has changed in a big way since.

Third-bottom West Ham United then travelled to Fulham the following night and Crysencio Summerville’s strike gave the Irons a huge 1-0 victory which took them to within three points of the Whites.

The same night, fourth-bottom Nottingham Forest managed to get a 2-2 draw from their clash at Manchester City as they too moved three points behind the Whites.

Those results piled the pressure on fifth-bottom Tottenham Hotspur ahead of their Thursday night hosting of Crystal Palace and Spurs suffered yet another defeat, a 3-1 loss leaving them just one point ahead of Forest and West Ham and two behind Leeds.

With bottom club Wolves and second-bottom Burnley, it’s looking like one from four for the final relegation spot and the supercomputer from the team at CasinoHawks is predicting a big further twist and relegation shocker in its new predicted final table and points. Here is the full new rundown in reverse order.

Leeds United’s struggling rivals Tottenham Hotspur have suffered a double blow in their quest for Premier League survival - and data experts Opta have now produced their new predicted final table and points.

Spurs lined up for Thursday evening’s hosting of Crystal Palace still seeking a first win of 2026 but knowing that getting one would take them above Leeds and send them four points clear of the dropzone.

That looked likely as former Leeds star Archie Gray set up Dominic Solanke to fire Spurs ahead but Tottenham’s night then imploded a bit like their season so far as Micky van de Ven was sent off en route to the team suffering a 3-1 defeat, van de Ven now facing a one-match ban as part of a double blow.

It’s all left Spurs two points behind 15th-placed Leeds with just eight games left and only one point above both third-bottom West Ham and fourth-bottom Nottingham Forest.

Leeds remain three points clear of the dropzone and two points clear of Tottenham but now seven points behind Palace, Brighton now the team directly above United but six points ahead of them.

Thursday night’s result was another huge development in the fight for Premier League survival and data experts Opta have now produced their new predicted final table and points following the full completion of the midweek games.

Here is the full new run down in reverse order.

Leeds United’s struggling rivals Tottenham Hotspur have suffered a fresh blow in their quest for Premier League survival - and the bookies have made a massive call in their new predicted final table.

Spurs lined up for Thursday evening’s hosting of Crystal Palace still seeking a first win of 2026 but knowing that getting one would take them above Leeds and send them four points clear of the dropzone.

That looked likely as former Leeds star Archie Gray set up Dominic Solanke to fire Spurs ahead but Tottenham’s night then imploded a bit like their season so far as Micky van de Ven was sent off en route to the team suffering a 3-1 defeat.

It’s all left Spurs two points behind 15th-placed Leeds with just eight games left and only one point above both third-bottom West Ham and fourth-bottom Nottingham Forest.

Leeds remain three points clear of the dropzone and two points clear of Tottenham but now seven points behind Palace, Brighton now the team directly above United but six points ahead of them.

Thursday night’s result was another huge development in the fight for Premier League survival and the bookies have quickly made a huge call with a massive change in their new predicted final Premier League table.

Here is the full new run down based on the latest relegation and title odds.

Leeds United are six points clear of the dropzone with ten games left - and Opta’s supercomputer has made a big Whites call in its new predicted final table and points.

Daniel Farke’s suffered a rare defeat under the Elland Road lights and just a third league loss from their last 15 games on Saturday evening as title-chasing Manchester City left Elland Road with a 1-0 success.

Leeds, though, remained six points clear of the relegation zone despite the defeat after third-bottom West Ham’s 5-2 loss at Liverpool on Saturday afternoon.

Nevertheless, United’s defeat to City offered both fifth-bottom Tottenham Hotspur and fourth-bottom Nottingham Forest the chance to improve their position, Spurs knowing that a win at Sunday’s hosts Fulham would send them above Farke’s Whites.

Tottenham, though, in new boss Igor Tudor’s second game in charge, suffered yet another defeat as Fulham recorded a 2-1 victory that leaves Spurs two points below Leeds with ten games left. In an arguably even bigger boost for Leeds, fourth-bottom Forest were also beaten by the same score at Brighton, leaving the Reds four points behind the Whites.

Completing a triple Whites boost, 14th-placed Crystal Palace also suffered a 2-1 defeat at Manchester United which featured the additional Eagles blow of a straight red card for star defender Maxence Lacroix. Palace could have kicked seven points clear of Leeds with a win but remain just one place and four points above them.

Apart from bottom of the table Wolves winning, it’s left the bottom seven standings exactly as they were and Opta’s supercomputer has now unveiled its new predicted final table and points featuring a big Whites call.

Here is the full new rundown including the latest Arsenal v City title call.