Arsenal v Leeds United: YEP Jury give their big-match predictions

ANDY RHODES

When the fixtures were first released, this was one that certainly caught the eye.

Last season, the still Championship Whites received heaps of praise for their gung-ho performance at the Emirates, playing Arsenal off the park in the first half. It was a sign of things to come and Leeds have made light work of many more unorganised teams since then.

Organisation has often been Arsenal’s downfall this season, losing games you would expect them to ‘walk’ away with given the players they have.

In fact, the Gunners have won only two home league games since October.

Teams know who Leeds’ danger men are but still can’t seem to stop them.

Patrick Bamford and Raphinha have played a direct role in 12 of United’s last 16 goals, showing just how well both have adapted to Premier League football.

Leeds are one of the division’s form sides and have a fine away record to boot. I would have predicted a Leeds win, but the Emirates is unfortunately within the M25.

Prediction: Arsenal 1 Leeds United 1.

DAVID WATKINS

It’s over a year now since we were last at the Emirates, a cold wet night in January when, for 45 minutes, our Championship side outplayed the Gunners.

It was, in hindsight, a good marker; a night that assured us that, if we could just get out of the Championship, we’d be more than able to hold our own in the Premier League.

Since then, we’ve played out a goalless draw with Arsenal at Elland Road, another game in which we outplayed them, with 25 attempts on goal to their nine and against 10 men for 40 minutes; yet still didn’t beat them.

In January, the Gunners found some form after an erratic start to the season – reeling off six wins and two draws in nine games – but since then defeats at Wolves and Aston Villa have made them look vulnerable again.

This game could go either way but, assuming we’ll still be without the creativity of either Rodrigo or Pablo Hernandez, I have a feeling Arsenal will find a way to just sneak it with the undoubted quality they possess – and that London hoodoo still weighing us down!

Prediction: Arsenal 1 Leeds United 0.

MATTHEW EVANS

A comfortable 90 minutes against Palace was as surprising as it was welcome and it went some way to demonstrating just how neatly Leeds are settling into Premier League life.

Our mix of effort, quality and ambition was unanswerable and we’ll certainly win more games than we’ll lose with the same approach. If you’d told us at the start of the season that we were going into this away fixture with Arsenal above them in the table we’d have all been very happy with that.

Looking back, we could and should have got more out of the home fixture and we came very close to getting a result at the Emirates a year ago in the FA Cup. It leaves me optimistic for Sunday. It reminds me of our fixtures with AS Roma at the turn of the century. We played them four times in a couple of years and went from losing 1-0, through a couple of draws, to winning 1-0 as the balance of power shifted. Leeds and Bielsa know what needs to be done now and, if we can keep up the effort we’ve seen in the last four games and keep it tight at the back, then a win is on the cards.

Prediction: Arsenal 0 Leeds United 1.

KEITH INGHAM

After Monday’s excellent 2-0 win over Crystal Palace, Leeds travel to Arsenal for a Sunday tea-time kick off.

Arsenal, under Mikel Arteta, haven’t had the best of seasons; they are inconsistent and have already been beaten home and away by Aston Villa. That said, they can be dangerous and have enough quality to be a threat to the teams in the top six if they go on a winning run.

Leeds have a doubt over Kalvin Phillips who, after making it 200 appearances for Leeds in Monday’s win over Palace, limped off late in the game. If he is absent, without doubt he will be missed.

‘Mr Versatile’, Stuart Dallas, moved into his position and could start there again while Rodrigo, Llorente and Koch are still unavailable.

Usually, Arsenal would be short odds to beat Leeds but they may be evens as United have proved on away trips that they can be more than a match for anybody. Just ask Leicester City!

Leeds have a long history with the Londoners and nobody can forget some of the classic games involving the two teams, including the 1972 FA Cup final and the 1968 League Cup final which Leeds won both games by the same 1-0 scoreline.

There have also been some games in the old Division One, Premier League and FA Cup that have been memorable for different reasons.

I went to the old Highbury I think in the 1976/77 season, it ended 2-2 with Tony Currie getting both Leeds goals.

If Phillips is available, it would be a massive boost and might tilt the scales towards a rare win in London for Leeds.

Prediction: Arsenal 1 Leeds United 2.

JACOB STARR

A Sunday trip to the Emirates is in the offing this weekend, but who would have thought Leeds would be above Arsenal at this stage of the season?

A resounding win on Monday over Crystal Palace saw us climb above the Gunners and into the top half of the Premier League table, so a victory against Mikel Arteta’s men could go some way into consolidating a top-half finish.

The hosts have lost successive matches, and have failed to win in three, with United feeling aggrieved not to have found a breakthrough in the 0-0 draw at Elland Road back in November in what was a dominant performance.

So a win is definitely within the realms of possibility.

I was so close to predicting three points but then I realised which city Arsenal play their home matches in …

For the record, the Whites haven’t scored in the three previous encounters with Arsenal but I struggle to envision a fourth without a goal, especially after watching Raphinha against Palace.

A superb individual performance, which included sending Gary Cahill back to Bolton. The £17m price tag is becoming more and more impressive by the day.

Prediction: Arsenal 2 Leeds United 2.

MIKE GILL

Just over a year ago the plucky Championship contenders, Leeds United, held the ‘Mighty Arsenal’ for most of the game before being edged out by a single goal.

For this, the Whites received a pat on the head by the indulgent and patronising media.

Now our favourites stand just above the Gunners in the Premier League.

A dominant performance against Crystal Palace shows how far United have travelled since last season and sets them up for a fascinating return to the Emirates.

Illan Meslier is now the Whites’ undoubted first-choice goalkeeper, his team-mates are all in good form and United have every reason to be confident.

Arsenal have lost their last two games by the odd goal but they still boast one of the most miserly defences in the top division.

At Elland Road, they shared that rarest of outcomes with Leeds – a goalless draw.

That is a possibility on Sunday and it is important that United don’t get too frustrated if they don’t take an early lead.

Prediction: Arsenal 1 Leeds United 1.

Support the YEP and become a subscriber today. Enjoy unlimited access to local news and the latest on Leeds United, With a digital subscription, you see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click HERE to subscribe.