How Leeds United compared in the Premier League this time last season - league standings, injuries and line-ups

The Whites enjoyed a brilliant first campaign back in the Premier League last time out but things haven’t been quite as bright in their second.

After Leeds United have played around a quarter of their league fixtures, we have compared their current league standings and form to this time last season.

League standings

After nine games of the current campaign, Leeds UInited sit in 17th place with seven points – three points above the relegation zone.

Meanwhile, this time last season the Whites had picked up eleven points, leaving them in 14th – a point below champions Manchester City.

Marcelo Bielsa’s positive start upon their return to the top tier meant they were eight points above the bottom three after a 0-0 stalemate against Arsenal.

Form

Leeds United’s opening nine fixtures of the 2020/21 campaign saw them win an impressive four fixtures against Fulham, Sheffield United, Aston Villa and Everton.

Their first win came against the Cottagers in the second match of the season as they played out a thrilling 4-3 victory, before beating the Blades 1-0 the following week.

Bielsa’s side also played out two rather impressive draws this time last season – 1-1 against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium and the 0-0 stalemate against Arsenal at Elland Road.

Leeds have already drawn four times this season against Everton, Burnley, Newcastle United and Wolves.

Meanwhile, the start of the previous campaign saw the Whites endure four defeats in nine games.

Their opening day loss against Liverpool was another 4-3 thriller, before dropping points against Wolves, Leicester City and Crystal Palace - all away from home.

This time last season Leeds United had scored 14 goals, compared to the eight this season.

However, after nine matches of the previous campaign they had conceded 16 goals – one less than their current tally.

Injuries

After nine fixtures last season, Leeds United had three injuries to their senior players.

Summer signing Diego Llorente was out with a groin injury for the start of the campaign, making two appearances against Chelsea and Newcastle United until he was able to make a full return in February of this year.

Adam Forshaw was a long-term absentee and had missed out on a majority of the Whites’ promotion-winning campaign with a hip problem.

The midfielder was injured for the whole of last season and returned to the starting line-up this month.

Jamie Shackleton also picked up a minor knock at the start of the season that saw him sit out of four matches.

Leeds’ injury list has been significantly longer this time round and has massively impacted their start to the season, with some major players sidelined.

Bielsa was missing six key figures from their starting XI in the draw with Wolves at the weekend – Robin Koch, Luke Ayling, Junior Firpo, Kalvin Phillips, Raphinha and Patrick Bamford.

All six would be likely to feature in the Whites’ strongest line-up but each have missed a significant chunk of the campaign so far, often leaving Bielsa will little option but to play a weakened side.

Line-ups

Leeds United played out a 1-1 draw against Wolves in their most recent fixture and, as previously mentioned, were plagued with injuries and so were forced to play a makeshift starting XI at Elland Road.

Their nineth fixture of the 2020/21 campaign saw them play what was arguably their strongest XI against Arsenal, with only the injured Llorente likely to feature if he was fit.

Illan Meslier

Illan Meslier started in between the posts for Leeds United and has been their number one choice since taking over from Kiko Casilla during their final Championship campaign.

The Spaniard was left on the bench against Arsenal but has since been replaced by Kristoffer Klaesson, who is now their number two since Casilla’s loan departure to Elche.

Luke Ayling, Robin Koch, Liam Cooper, Ezgjan Alioski

Leeds United’s defence this time last season is rather different to the one that faced Wolves – mostly due to injuries.

Luke Ayling’s absence meant that midfielder Jamie Shackleton had to take his place at right-back, while Stuart Dallas featured on the opposite side with summer arrival Firpo out too.

The Whites injury woes also saw the likes of Joe Gelhardt, Leo Hjelde and Cody Drameh make the bench at the weekend – while last season’s substitutes held the strength of Rodrigo, Struijk and Helder Costa.

Llorente has returned to the starting XI since his difficult first season in the Premier League that saw him missed the tie against the Gunners, while captain Cooper remains in defence.

Mateusz Klich, Kalvin Phillips, Stuart Dallas

Kalvin Phillips has been outstanding for Leeds United since their promotion to the Premier League and his stellar performances earned him a place in the England squad.

His current absence saw centre-back Pascal Struijk feature in midfield alongside Klich – with fellow midfielders Shackleton and Dallas needed elsewhere.

Raphinha, Patrick Bamford, Jack Harrison

Leeds' clash with Arsenal was only Raphinha’s fourth match since his arrival from French club Rennes and he bagged his first goal for the club only a couple of weeks later.

This time round the Brazil international has scored three goals in the Whites’ opening fixtures and started against Wolves, however came off injured early in the second half.

Similarly, Bamford silenced all of his critics last season, scoring seven goals by this time last year – including a hat-trick against Aston Villa.

The striker has scored once this season but has only featured in the first five league matches of the season and was replaced by Rodrigo at the weekend.

Harrison still remains in the starting line-up but is yet to score in the Premier League this season after bagging a superb solo goal in their first match of the season during the 2020/21 campaign.

Dan James has also joined the line-up since his arrival from Manchester United over the summer, but has so far failed to claim a goal or an assist.