Leeds United boss Bielsa is expecting an attacking feast against promotion rivals Norwich City

The significance of a game which needs no hype is less striking for him than the aesthetic appeal of a contest between two teams who like to go for the jugular.

“The offensive aspects of both teams make this attractive,” he said, as a sold-out Elland Road proves.

Striking for the jugular is the order of weekend, at a point in the season where fortune starts to favour the brave. Leeds and Norwich, first and second in the league, could be sucked into playing for the safety of a draw but United are not that team under Bielsa and Norwich have dispensed with caution under Daniel Farke.

The risks taken by both coaches have been worth the reward, setting up a match which every other side in their division will follow keenly tomorrow night.

Norwich look at present like the biggest threat to Leeds’ position at the top of the table, three points back and with a league record which is better than United’s since the end of the first month of the season.

Tomorrow’s result could throw open the title race or place the initiative firmly in Bielsa’s hands.

Tickets sold out earlier this month and the scramble for spares or any stray seats has been intensifying all week.

Farke’s squad have scored more goals than Bielsa’s but conceded more too and Bielsa’s mantra of attack being the best form of defence has not tricked him into thinking that Leeds will avoid pressure at the back during periods of the eagerly-awaited contest.

“We want to attack,” United’s head coach said, “but we know we’ll have to defend a lot too.”

Leeds invariably defend well at Elland Road, where their clean sheets number seven.

That record has helped to open up a small amount of daylight to Norwich, a gap which would increase to six points if Leeds get the better of this weekend’s fixture.

Bielsa rarely gives much credence to the table mid-season and a margin so encouraging with 16 matches to complete would not make him sleep more comfortably either.

“If we have a difference of six points and the team plays with regularity then it’s a big difference,” he said.

“If we have ups and downs then it’s not.” Bielsa sees ups and downs in Leeds, even while those on the outside see a squad who have misplaced very few steps since the season began in August.

Bielsa is not convinced either that the challenge United’s hold on first place comes predominantly from Norwich.

Sheffield United are three points further back in third and the gap to sixth-placed Derby County – a side demolished by Leeds three weeks ago – is fully 11 but there is time enough for the division to shift and for form to kick in elsewhere.

United know better than anyone how a season can turn having watched Fulham come from nowhere to deny them a play-off place in 2017.

“They (Norwich) are an opponent we have to respect but all the teams have had ups and downs,” Bielsa said.

“Aston Villa, Middlesbrough, Derby, Sheffield United, West Brom – it would be a mistake to think any of these teams are not important.

“We can’t ignore their potential and I only quoted the teams who came to mind. Football usually makes sure that things which seem evident to everyone don’t happen.

“Norwich are a team who attack very well.

“They’re a team designed to attack. It doesn’t mean they don’t defend well but the profile of the team is creative.

“Apart from our positions in the league, I think the offensive aspects of both teams make this game attractive.”

Bielsa was hoping yesterday to see confirmation of a deal to sign Daniel James from Swansea City but the 11pm deadline came and went without an announcement from either club.

James passed a medical at Thorp Arch in the afternoon after Swansea and Leeds agreed a deal but a last-minute argument over payment schedules left James sitting at Elland Road crossing his fingers that City would sign off on a loan move to the end of the season.

At his pre-match press conference, Bielsa spoke openly about the player United were trying to sign.

“Victor Orta (Leeds’ director of football) chose James and I accepted the player shown to me,” he said.

“I agreed with the fact that this player has the features the team needs and responds to the needs of the team.

“If he comes it will be a significant transfer.

“If he doesn’t come then we will find solutions.”

Bielsa put a high value on the signing of James but even as protracted talks went on, his thoughts were concentrated on Norwich.

He singled out Teemu Pukki, Norwich’s Finnish striker, for special attention after seeing the forward score 17 league goals and provide Farke with a high return for his free transfer from Denmark in the summer.

Bielsa has ample attacking quality in his own line-up and a fit Pablo Hernandez will start after the Spaniard overcame a minor niggle sustained in last weekend’s 2-1 win at Rotherham United but Bielsa admitted he was wary of the “simple and efficient” Pukki, the striker who will lead City’s line.

“His skills are not common in English football,” Bielsa said.

“He’s not a player who goes for 50-50s or uses his physical capabilities but he’s a player who’s hard to neutralise.”