Video: Leeds United's Pontus Jansson expecting fierce Hillsborough battle against Sheffield Wednesday

PONTUS JANSSON insisted the pressure was piled on Sheffield Wednesday as he urged Leeds United to 'go out like animals' and be ready for a 'war' at Hillsborough on Sunday.
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Leeds are looking to recover from a midweek defeat at Cardiff City which knocked them off the top of the Championship but Jansson said Wednesday would be feeling more tension after a mixed start to the season and a bad week of results.

The Owls lost a first Steel City derby against Sheffield United in five years last Sunday, suffering a 4-2 defeat at home, and dropped three more points away to out-of-form Birmingham City on Wednesday night.

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The results raised questions about the future of Carlos Carvalhal, the manager who has taken Wednesday to the Championship play-offs in the past two years, and the Spaniard was forced to defend his record and the performance of his players in the aftermath of their derby defeat.

Leeds, meanwhile, sit second in the Championship despite a 3-1 loss to Cardiff and hold a seven-point lead over Wednesday after 10 games.

Centre-back Jansson said: “They have to come out now and make a good performance. They’ll want to win and give everything.

“It’s a derby with a lot of people and a lot of emotions. We have to be prepared for that but we have to go out from the first minute and show we want to win because that could make them a bit more scared. They have pressure on them.

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“We also have pressure on us but there’s a bigger pressure on them because they’ve started badly.

Pontus Jansson.
 Picture Bruce RollinsonPontus Jansson.
 Picture Bruce Rollinson
Pontus Jansson. Picture Bruce Rollinson

“It’s a derby on their field so they will come at us from the first minute. We have to go out like 11 animals and be prepared for a war because that’s what it’s going to be.”

Leeds spent a fortnight at the top of the Championship table but were overtaken by Cardiff after a frustrating loss in Wales. A first-half red card shown to Liam Cooper compounded a bad night for Christiansen’s side.

“When we’re first in the table other teams will want to come and beat us,” added Jansson. ”That’s normal in every league I think.”