Leeds United can guarantee that they will top the Championship on Christmas Day with a win on Sunday.
Leeds go into their final game before Christmas knowing that they are arguably about to face their toughest task of the season so far, with Aston Villa standing between the Whites and their sixth successive win.
If there is any side that could take advantage of Leeds’ incredible run of bad luck when it comes to injuries in defence, it is Dean Smith’s men, who have scored 21 goals in their last seven games.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side have actually only conceded one goal in their recent winning run. And the Whites have received a massive boost ahead of the game on Sunday.
Liam Cooper has returned to training this week after coming off during the win at Sheffield United at the start of December. It is not clear whether he will be available for the clash with the Villans, but it would be huge for Leeds if he could feature.
Kalvin Phillips has done well alongside Pontus Jansson, but there have been a couple of shaky moments. Being able to push him forward into the quarterback role he has looked brilliant in this season therefore, and include Cooper in the team would give Leeds a big lift.
If there is a chance that Cooper could get through the game, it may be a risk worth taking. However, Bielsa will also know that Leeds have created a good gap to the chasing pack, so delaying the captain’s return by one game if he is not ready could be the smart move if there is a danger that he could make the problem worse.
If Cooper does return, the obvious player to drop down to the bench seems to be Lewis Baker. Baker has struggled when handed recent starts, so Mateusz Klich and Adam Forshaw may be the ones tasked with winning the battle in the middle of the park.
Given Bielsa’s recent team selections, it appears most likely that the likes of Jack Clarke and Patrick Bamford will start on the bench. But it should be no surprise if they feature at some point.
With that in mind, here is a look at the predicted lineup in full…
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