Marcelo Bielsa’s side have opened up the season promisingly and are seeking to continue their momentum at Elland Road
Championship title favourites Leeds will seek to build on their opening weekend success when they host Nottingham Forest at Elland Road.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side missed out on promotion via the play-offs last term but justified their tag as the team to beat as they ran out 3-1 winners against Bristol City on Sunday.
Forest, meanwhile, suffered a 2-1 home loss against West Brom, despite taking the lead through Marry Cash after eight minutes.
The City Ground club now face what may prove to be the most difficult trip in the second tier as they seek to bounce back.
| Game | Leeds vs Nottingham Forest |
| Date | Saturday, August 10 |
| Time | 12:30pm BST / 7:30am ET |
In the United States (US), the game will be available for streaming on ESPN+.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| N/A | ESPN+ |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will be broadcast on Sky Sports Main Event and can be streamed via Sky Go Extra.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Sky Sports Main Event | Sky Go Extra |
| Position | Leeds squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Meslier, Casilla, Huffer |
| Defenders | Cooper, Berardi, Shaughnessy, White, Alioski, Douglas, De Bock, Davis |
| Midfielders | Phillips, Anita, Bouy, Stevens, Forshaw, Klich, Shackleton, O’Kane, Dallas |
| Forwards | Costa, Clarke, Harrison, Hernandez, Nketiah, Bamford, Roberts, Cibicki |
Leeds starting XI: Casilla, Douglas, Cooper, White, Dallas, Phillips, Klich, Forshaw, Hernandez, Harrison, Bamford.
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Subs: Meslier, Berardi, Alioski, Shackleton, Bogusz, Costa, Clarke.
| Position | Nottingham Forest squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Samba, Muric, Pantilimon, Smith |
| Defenders | Worrall, Chema, Figueiredo, Milosevic, Benalouane, Hefele, Dawson, Robinson, Ribeiro, Jenkinson, Darikwa |
| Midfielders | Semedo, Saw, Yacob, Bridcutt, Bostock, Yates, Guedioura, Watson, Cash, Adomah, Carvalho, Silva |
| Forwards | Lolley, Ariyibi, Appiah, Clough, Grabban, Mir, Ameobi, Murphy, Cummings |
Nottingham Forest XI: Muric, Cash, Worrall, Dawson, Robinson, Semedo, Watson, Lolley, Silva, Adomah, Grabban.
Subs: Samba, Ribeiro, Figueiredo, Mir, Jenkinson, Ameobi, Sow.
Leeds can be backed to continue their winning start at odds of 8/15 with bet365. Nottingham Forest are 13/2 to spring an upset, while a draw is on offer at 16/5.
Leeds fully lived up to their billing as Championship title favourites last weekend as they swept aside Bristol City. After more than 15 years without a place at English football’s top table, the goal of the Lilywhites is to return to the Premier League, but while they have started promisingly, they learned painfully in the play-offs last year that the finish is more important.
Head coach Marcelo Bielsa has known that for years, with his sides infamous for looking strong in August and September only to wilt when it really matters, and as such it was little surprise to see the Argentine circumspect after goals from Pablo Hernandez, Patrick Bamford and Jack Harrison had given them three points.
“I know perfectly well that this is a long season and all of the things that happen at the start of the season do not determine the finish. We suffered a lot in this situation last season,” he admitted.
Now it is about following through on their promise in the remaining 45 games of the season.
Bielsa’s task has been complicated by Financial Fair Play, which has compelled the club to significantly trim their squad, but crucially they kept hold of key man Kalvin Phillips, who had been linked with a summer move.
As such, the Argentine’s approach to this game will be much like any other.
“It’s the same we have every game, the same expectations: to try be better than the opponent and to deserve the win,” he said.
If Leeds got off to a flier, the same cannot be said of their weekend opponents, Nottingham Forest, who went down last weekend 2-1 to West Brom.
“The West Brom result impacted on the players a little bit but I’m asking them to keep their confidence up because I know they can play as well as they did in the first 10 minutes,” manager Sabri Lamouchi said. “That is why I want players here with personality and experience because we will go through tough times but it is how we respond to those tough times that is important.”
It doesn’t come much tougher in the Championship than a trip to Elland Road, and it will take an enormous effort for underdogs Forest to take anything from this challenging trip.