Leeds United have struggled for form in 2018.
Since the turn of the New Year, Leeds United have badly struggled for form and as shown by the table provided by Opta Stats, they are currently among the three worst teams in the Championship in 2018.
| Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Points | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fulham | 13 | 3 | 0 | 36 | 8 | 42 | 16 |
| Millwall | 10 | 5 | 1 | 25 | 12 | 35 | 16 |
| Cardiff | 10 | 3 | 2 | 27 | 11 | 33 | 15 |
| Aston Villa | 10 | 2 | 4 | 32 | 16 | 32 | 16 |
| Wolves | 9 | 4 | 3 | 27 | 16 | 31 | 16 |
| Middlesbrough | 8 | 4 | 4 | 26 | 15 | 28 | 16 |
| Brentford | 7 | 3 | 6 | 18 | 15 | 24 | 16 |
| Norwich | 6 | 6 | 4 | 21 | 21 | 24 | 16 |
| QPR | 7 | 2 | 7 | 23 | 26 | 23 | 16 |
| Sheff Utd | 5 | 6 | 5 | 16 | 18 | 21 | 16 |
| Birmingham | 6 | 2 | 8 | 18 | 23 | 20 | 16 |
| Derby | 4 | 8 | 3 | 20 | 16 | 20 | 15 |
| Hull | 5 | 5 | 6 | 20 | 18 | 20 | 16 |
| Preston | 5 | 5 | 6 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 16 |
| Bolton | 4 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 19 | 17 | 16 |
| Ipswich | 4 | 5 | 7 | 11 | 17 | 17 | 16 |
| Sheff Wed | 4 | 5 | 7 | 18 | 24 | 17 | 16 |
| Bristol C | 3 | 6 | 7 | 16 | 21 | 15 | 16 |
| Forest | 3 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 15 | 15 |
| Barnsley | 3 | 5 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 14 | 15 |
| Reading | 3 | 5 | 8 | 16 | 27 | 14 | 16 |
| Leeds | 2 | 6 | 8 | 16 | 29 | 12 | 16 |
| Burton Albion | 2 | 5 | 9 | 13 | 29 | 11 | 16 |
| Sunderland | 2 | 4 | 10 | 15 | 31 | 10 | 16 |
The Whites opened their campaign with an impressive 3-2 win at Bolton Wanderers live in-front of the TV cameras, and that day they clearly looked a league better than the struggling hosts.
More early success was to come for Leeds, with four wins and two draws in their next six games leaving fans largely optimistic of at least a playoff push as they comfortably sat inside the top six.
But results and performances seemed to lack consistency from thereon in, with a four-game winning streak in December quickly followed by a six-game winless run costing manager Thomas Christiansen his job.
The sale of talisman and last season’s leading scorer Chris Wood to Premier League side Burnley last August certainly hasn’t helped their cause, but it has been such a bizarre campaign for Leeds fans to endure.
The sacking of Christiansen and subsequent appointment for Paul Heckingbottom hasn’t exactly changed fortunes at Elland Road, with just two wins in 11 games for the former Barnsley manager.
But despite sitting safely in midtable on 54 points, rather worryingly it has been an alarming slide in form for Leeds and since New Years day only two Championship teams have performed worse.
It’s no surprise to see the two teams who have performed worse – Sunderland and Burton Albion – prop up the table and with only five games remaining both need a miracle to preserve their Championship status.
For Leeds, 29 goals conceded in their last 16 games is a shocking statistic and shows where they most certainly need to strengthen in the summer if they wish to challenge for a top six spot next term.
Fans seem reserved over Heckingbottom after a disappointing opening period as boss, but the former Barnsley man deserves a summer to shape his squad and rid the team of those vastly underperforming.
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