Leeds United will enjoy a two-week break as the first international break of the 2024-25 season begins. The team heads into this break unbeaten in the Championship, having drawn two and won two of their first four matches. A 2-0 victory over Hull City on Saturday propelled them to fourth in the table.
Daniel Farke’s squad is tied on points with fifth-placed Blackburn Rovers, while Watford holds third place with nine points. West Brom is second, and Sunderland, the only team with a perfect record after four games, leads the table.
Leeds will next face Burnley at home on September 14 at 12:30pm, as some players depart for international duty. This match will be an opportunity for Leeds to make an early impact against a team expected to compete for promotion. Burnley currently sits sixth with seven points from their opening fixtures.
Burnley is facing injury concerns ahead of their clash with Leeds. Defender Maxime Esteve and forward Manuel Benson suffered injuries in their game against Blackburn Rovers. Benson, who was previously linked with a move to Leeds, remains at Turf Moor. Burnley manager Scott Parker is uncertain about the extent of their injuries, noting that Esteve’s hamstring issue and Benson’s injury are yet to be fully assessed.
Parker is already dealing with several injuries, including those of Jordan Beyer, Hannes Delcroix, Hjalmar Ekdal, Aaron Ramsey, Enock Agyei, Mike Tresor, and Nathan Redmond. He indicated that some of these players might return after the international break, with Enock Agyei and Delcroix potentially available.
In other news, Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder revealed he used Bramall Lane’s atmosphere to persuade Crystal Palace’s Jesurun Rak-Sakyi to join the Blades. Leeds and another Premier League club had £15m offers for Rak-Sakyi rejected by Palace, who preferred to keep him. Despite this, Rak-Sakyi has been loaned out for the season, with Sheffield United, Leeds, and Hull City all competing for his loan. Rak-Sakyi chose Sheffield United, with Farke having previously stated that no signing would be guaranteed game time.
