This season's Premier League relegation battle is shaping up to be one of the tightest in recent history. Just seven points separate 12th place from the foot of the table, while the bottom three all sit on exactly 15 points.
Leeds find themselves among those fighting to preserve their Premier League status, after a difficult first full season under the tutelage of Jesse Marsch.
The Whites cruised to a famous 3-0 victory over Chelsea at Elland Road earlier in the season, and also recorded an historic win against Liverpool at Anfield.
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But with only four wins under their belt, Leeds sit just two points clear of danger on 17 points. With that in mind, LeedsLive have taken an in-depth look at the clutch of clubs fighting relegation...
12th: Crystal Palace
Games played: 18
Points: 22
Relegation odds: 16/1
Next manager to go odds: 33/1
Next five fixtures: Man United (H); Newcastle (H); Man United (A); Brighton (H); Brentford (A).
Crystal Palace could be sucked into the relegation battle if they fail to improve their recent run of results. The Eagles have lost four of their last five games in the Premier League, but still boast a seven-point cushion above the bottom three.
Nevertheless, Palace have a difficult set of fixtures to contend with in the coming weeks. They play Manchester United twice, and face games against strong opposition in the shape of Newcastle, Brighton and Brentford.
Man United have won nine games on the bounce across all competitions, while Newcastle are unbeaten in their last 14 in the Premier League. Brentford have collected three league wins on the spin, and Brighton are fresh off the back of winning 3-0 against Liverpool last weekend.
Goals have been the biggest issue for Patrick Vieira's side this season, with the Eagles scoring just 17 times in the league. They also have a huge reliance on Wilfried Zaha, who has been directly involved in 47% of their goals this term (six goals, two assists).
13th: Nottingham Forest
Games played: 19
Points: 20
Relegation odds: 2/1
Next manager to go odds: 33/1
Next five fixtures: Bournemouth (A); Leeds (H); Fulham (A); Man City (H); West Ham (A).
Nottingham Forest have undergone a remarkable improvement since the turn of the year. Steve Cooper's men earned a 1-1 draw against Chelsea at the City Ground on New Year's Day, and have since gone onto to climb out of the relegation zone.
Back-to-back victories against Southampton and Leicester City respectively have seen the newly-promoted outlet move five points clear of the bottom three.
Forest's problems have been at both ends of the pitch this season. Only Wolves (12 goals) have scored fewer than the Reds (15), while only Bournemouth (41 goals) have conceded more than Forest (34).
There was also the issue of integrating 22 summer signings into the squad, which has proven to be a far from straightforward task. But Forest are hitting form at an ideal time, and face two relegation rivals in the shape of Bournemouth and Leeds in their next two games.
14th: Leeds United
Leeds extended their winless run to five games as they were defeated 2-1 against Aston Villa under the lights at Villa Park on Friday evening.
The Whites are two points above the relegation zone at the moment, but face three crucial fixtures in the coming weeks against Nottingham Forest, Everton and Southampton respectively.
Jesse Marsch will need to rack up points during this window to give Leeds the best possible chance of survival. The American has also been quick to bolster his squad, with the recent additions of Max Wober and Georginio Rutter.
Games played: 18
Points: 17
Relegation odds: 7/2
Next manager to go odds: 14/1
Next five fixtures: Brentford (H); Nottingham Forest (A); Man United (H); Everton (A); Southampton (H).
15th: Leicester City
Leicester looked to be turning a corner before the World Cup break after a dismal start to the season. However, the Foxes have lost all four of their games since returning to action on Boxing Day.
They have fallen to within two points of danger and the tide is quickly turning against Brendan Rodgers. A lack of investment in the squad over the summer coupled with a number of injury problems have not helped, but Leicester look in serious danger of facing the drop.
Games played: 19
Points: 17
Relegation odds: 7/2
Next manager to go odds: 9/1
Next five fixtures: Brighton (H); Aston Villa (A); Tottenham (H); Man United (A); Arsenal (H).
16th: Wolves
Wolves collected just two victories from their opening 15 games and looked a very good bet for relegation. But Julen Lopetegui has turned things around since taking over at Molineux during the World Cup break.
He marked his Premier League debut with a 2-1 win against relegation rivals Everton at Goodison Park on Boxing Day. Since then, Wolves lost by a slender 1-0 scoreline against Man United, before drawing against Aston Villa.
Daniel Podence's solitary strike earned Wolves a crucial 1-0 win over West Ham last weekend, and saw them climb out of the relegation zone for the first time since mid-October.
The biggest change under Lopetegui has been Wolves' improvement at the back. Wanderers have gone from conceding an average of 1.6 goals per game in the top-flight to just 0.75 goals per game in the last four games under Lopetegui.
Games played: 19
Points: 17
Relegation odds: 5/2
Next manager to go odds: 80/1
Next five fixtures: Man City (A); Liverpool (H); Southampton (A); Bournemouth (H); Fulham (A).
17th: AFC Bournemouth
Games played: 19
Points: 16
Relegation odds: 2/7
Next manager to go odds: 6/1
Next five fixtures: Nottingham Forest (H); Brighton (A); Newcastle (H); Wolves (A); Man City (H).
Gary O'Neill won the Bournemouth gig after a positive run of results following Scott Parker's departure from Dean Court in August. Bournemouth went unbeaten during O'Neill's first six league games at the helm (W2 D4), before losing the next four league games on the bounce.
But a comfortable 3-0 win against Everton deemed O'Neill worthy of being handed the reins on a permanent basis. However, things couldn't have gone much worse since the Cherries returned from the World Cup break.
Bournemouth have lost all four of their games in the Premier League, and have failed to score a single goal in the process. The Cherries have lost eight of their last nine league matches, and sit just one point above the relegation zone.
18th: West Ham
Games played: 19
Points: 15
Relegation odds: 4/1
Next manager to go odds: 2/1
Next five fixtures: Everton (H); Newcastle (A); Chelsea (H); Tottenham (A); Nottingham Forest (H).
The contrast between last season and the current campaign for West Ham has been huge. The Hammers reached the UEFA Europa League semi-finals in 2021-22, but now run the risk of tumbling out of the Premier League altogether this term.
West Ham have failed to win any of their last eight league games - a run which stretches all the way back to October. They've also taken just one point from their last two games against relegation rivals Leeds and Wolves.
There will be a lot on the line when David Moyes meets his former club Everton at the London Stadium on Saturday, with only goal difference separating the two sides.
The Hammers have only conceded 25 league goals this term, but their record of 15 goals scored is among the worst in the Premier League. Only Chelsea (£205.72m) and Manchester United (£205.67m) had a higher net spend than West Ham (£147.78m) during the summer transfer window.
However, the likes of Lucas Paqueta, Gianluca Scamacca and Maxwel Cornet have failed to meet expectations. Furthermore, players such as Vladimir Coufal, Tomas Soucek and Jarrod Bowen have struggled to replicate the same level of form that they showed in the previous season.
19th: Everton
Games played: 19
Points: 15
Relegation odds: 8/11
Next manager to go odds: 10/11
Next five fixtures: West Ham (A); Arsenal (H); Liverpool (A); Leeds (H); Aston Villa (H).
The friction between Everton supporters and the board reached boiling point after Southampton defeated the Toffees at Goodison Park on Saturday.
The board didn't attend the game due to concerns surrounding their own safety, and the supporters made their feelings known after the defeat as boos whistled around the ground.
Banners opposing those who run the club were unveiled, after Everton extended their winless run to nine games. Their 1-1 draw against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on New Year's Day interrupted a run of four straight defeats in all competitions.
However, any grounds for optimism were soon dashed as Brighton condemned Everton to a humiliating 4-1 defeat in front of their own fans. Frank Lampard is currently the bookmakers' favourite to become the next Premier League manager to be sacked with odds of 10/11.
20th: Southampton
Games played: 19
Points: 15
Relegation odds: 5/6
Next manager to go odds: 16/1
Next five fixtures: Aston Villa (H); Brentford (A); Wolves (H); Chelsea (A); Leeds (A).
Southampton couldn't have dreamed of a better week of results. After eliminating Crystal Palace in the FA Cup, the Saints shocked everyone with a 2-0 victory over Manchester City in the Carabao Cup quarter-final.
The next challenge was to translate their results in domestic cup competitions into the Premier League. And they passed that test with flying colours, as a brace from James Ward-Prowse saw them come from behind to beat Everton 2-1 at Goodison Park on Saturday.
Saints still sit at the foot of the table, although their victory over the Toffees has sent them to within one point of safety. They also ended a run of six straight league defeats, and registered their first three points since prevailing 1-0 at Bournemouth on October 19.
*All betting odds from Sky Bet.
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