Leeds United face arguably their biggest game since promotion to the Premier League as they host Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday. The Whites currently sit in the bottom three, behind Burnley on goal difference, who also have a game in hand.
Jesse Marsch’s side will be looking to arrest their slump in form which sees them winless in each of their four matches – three of which they have lost. Their loss of form has come at the worst possible time, with both Burnley and Everton picking up points consistently over the last few weeks.
But this weekend is set to be another pivotal round of matches, as Leeds face a Brighton side with little to play for, though their recent run of form suggests they most certainly aren’t already on the beach. Burnley, meanwhile, make the trip to top-four chasing Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, who will be buoyed by their 3-0 north London derby success over Arsenal.
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Everton, the other side in the battle, host in form Brentford at Goodison Park, knowing this could be the weekend their Premier League status is confirmed. Ahead of the three matches, here are both the best- and worst-case scenarios from a Leeds perspective.
Best-case
With no Premier League matches at all scheduled for Saturday, Burnley are the side who get the weekend underway at 12pm on Sunday. A defeat for the Clarets at Spurs could hand Leeds the extra motivation they need to get a result against Brighton just a couple of hours later.
Should Burnley lose and Leeds win, that would put the Whites three ahead, albeit with a worse goal difference, with Burnley’s game in hand on Thursday at Aston Villa. Leeds can, in fact, move as high as 16th this weekend, as they would also climb above Everton with three points, if they are defeated by Brentford in the late Super Sunday clash at 4.30pm.
Worst-case
As stalk as it sounds, Leeds’ relegation could be all but mathematically confirmed on Sunday if results do not go their way. A defeat against Brighton would leave them on 34 points with just one match still to play, which would be three behind Burnley if they win at Spurs, as well as a goal difference impossible to overturn.
Given Everton’s also far superior goal difference to the Whites, a point against Brentford would also put them out of reach for Marsch’s side, all but relegating them with a game still remaining.
