Monday 26th January 8.00pm | Hill Dickinson Stadium
Leeds United head to the Hill Dickinson Stadium for the first time on Monday night. Whilst Everton’s stadium is new and shiny, it perhaps doesn’t feel like home yet, a situation that Leeds will look to capitalise on as they look to re-establish the gap to the chasing pack at the bottom of the Premier League table after West Ham and Forest wins this weekend. But whilst those below them may have won, those above in the table have stumbled, with Brighton, Spurs and Palace all dropping points, and one decent away performance suddenly lifts Leeds up to 12th.
Daniel Farke arrives with relatively few concerns compared to recent weeks. There is “a little question mark” over Gabi Gudmundsson’s adductor, but Anton Stach and Dan James are both “pretty, pretty close” and have been reintegrated into team training. Jaka Bijol remains sidelined, though not for as long as first feared, just another two to three weeks, which likely keeps faith with a familiar back three of Pascal Struijk, Joe Rodon and either James Justin or Sebastiaan Bornauw. Further forward, Dominic Calvert-Lewin faces his former club for the first time, a subplot that adds edge to a fixture already carrying plenty of consequence.
Everton, meanwhile, look patched together. Jack Grealish being out for months robs them of the one player who can tilt a game, and his absence comes at a bad time. They’ve lost three of their last five, and injuries are biting. Michael Keane is suspended, Branthwaite and others are sidelined, and Moyes is already juggling. The Villa win was impressive, but it doesn’t erase the wider picture, this is a side that can be got at.
That said, nobody should expect space or generosity. Moyes teams never give you either. Everton will sit in, stay narrow, and dare Leeds to force the issue. Farke acknowledged as much, admitting it is “never easy to open one of David’s teams and create chances”, but his message remains consistent. Leeds will not park the bus or play scared. “We always want to be the protagonist and be proactive and score goals, home or away,” he insisted.
That mindset will be tested in an unfamiliar stadium and a typically awkward away environment, but it is also the clearest indication of how Farke wants his side to approach moments like this. Leeds are not treating this as a free hit or a damage-limitation exercise. They are expected to work, to run, and to impose themselves both physically and mentally against an opponent that thrives on disruption.
So this is the test. Not of tactics, or even quality, but of nerve. Leeds don’t need a statement win, just a win. Be solid. Be brave. Take the opportunity the table is offering instead of talking about it afterwards. First visit to Hill Dickinson or not, this has the feel of a night that nudges a season one way or the other and Leeds really can’t afford to nudge it the wrong way.
