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Joe Donnohue

Leeds United U23 duo absent in relegation battle as team news released for Derby County clash

Leeds United's U23s face a crunch match at the foot of the PL2 Division 1 table tonight, as Derby County visit York hoping to turn the tables on the young Whites.

Leeds' U23 outfit defeated the young Rams at Loughborough Stadium earlier this season, in a game which seems a distant memory given the two teams' contrasting form since.

The hosts are without a league win in 11 matches, although did record recent victories over Mansfield Town and Wigan Athletic in the PL Cup.

Meanwhile, Derby have been defeated just once in their last eight outings across all competitions.

It makes for an intriguing tie this evening, as Leeds are without two players who have been mightily impressive in U23 competition this season.

Lewis Bate and Leo Hjelde have been left out this evening, due to their involvement with the first-team squad yesterday.

Both players were introduced during the first half of Leeds' enthralling 3-2 win over West Ham United at the London Stadium, with Hjelde seeing out the match at left-back.

Bate was substituted in the second half, making way for Rodrigo Moreno on his comeback from injury, but Marcelo Bielsa made pains in his post-match press conference to stress his decision to withdraw Bate had little to do with the 19-year-old's performance on his Premier League debut.

This evening, Mark Jackson has named a youthful XI as expected, but with added experience in the form of Stuart McKinstry who made his Premier League debut earlier this season.

Here is the team named by the U23s' lead development coach.

Leeds United U23 XI: Klaesson, Sutcliffe, McCarron, Jenkins (c), Mullen, Littlewood, McKinstry, Allen, Dean, McGurk, Miller

Subs: Van den Heuvel, Kenneh, Moore, Gray, Coleman

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