Leeds United vs Oxford United: Five key battles and score prediction

The final round of fixtures before Christmas is upon us, with Saturday seeing an intriguing Championship match-up at Elland Road as managerless Oxford United take on promotion-chasing Leeds United.

Leeds are coming off a disappointing last-minute draw at Preston which preserved their place in the automatic promotion spots if nothing else.

Meanwhile, the U’s parted ways with manager Des Buckingham following a 3-1 home defeat to Sheffield Wednesday that left the club 20th in the Championship table.

In this article, Sports News Blitz writer Samuel Leasley outlines five key battles to anticipate and offers a score prediction.

Daniel Farke vs Gary Rowett

Farke is no doubt happy to have left Deepdale with a draw rather than the familiar 1-0 away defeat.

In spite of this, the German will want to extend his side’s near-perfect home record against an opposition distracted by managerial change.

With Ethan Ampadu and Largie Ramazani returning from injury, Farke has a mostly complete squad to choose from on Saturday.

And considering the immense fixture congestion still to come over the festive period, it is essential that Leeds build up a strong run of form to continue their promotion push.

Although Rowett will only take charge after Saturday’s game, he is sure to be an interested spectator in the crowd at Elland Road.

Many fans were confused by the decision to sack Buckingham due to the U’s sitting outside of the relegation zone despite the club operating with one of the three smallest budgets in the league.

Yet, it appears that those in charge at Oxford have their hearts set on the Championship and are therefore desperate to avoid any hint of relegation.

Rowett, it must be said, has not managed since an interim spell at Birmingham in which he failed to prevent their drop into League One.

Nevertheless, the appointment of the Englishman does appear to have some sense on account of his copious experience at Championship level.

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Dan James vs Greg Leigh

In a match where Leeds seemed destined to go goalless, it was once again James who stepped up to create the play that led to a crucial goal.

Indeed, James was the architect for the majority of Leeds’ chances at Deepdale, smashing one particular effort against the bar before seeing a cutback to Patrick Bamford pushed wide of the post.

Since his return from injury, James has been in top form for the Whites and will look to add to his goal tally against an Oxford side that has shipped 33 goals so far.

The former Manchester United man is set to face Leigh, who has by and large been one of the most consistent performers in an inconsistent team this season.

Operating chiefly down the left-hand side, the Jamaican international has made 19 interceptions in addition to netting three goals and a solitary assist.

He also has an exemplary disciplinary record as he is yet to pick up his first card of the campaign.

Such a record will be tested by the tricky James, but Leigh possesses the qualities to get the job done. 

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Joe Rodon vs Dane Scarlett

Rodon will be immensely frustrated that Leeds failed to keep a clean sheet for the second consecutive game after Brad Potts squeezed a poor shot under Illan Meslier for Preston’s opener last weekend.

The busy centre-back has won 12 tackles and made 13 interceptions on the way to 11 clean sheets this season.

He also has the highest passing accuracy of any player in the Leeds squad with 92% as the Welshman is often the first port of call when the Whites play out from defence.

A man looking to unsettle Rodon at Elland Road will be Oxford’s joint-top scorer Dane Scarlett.

Having only netted four times in the Championship, the forward needs to start getting on the scoresheet more often to stay ahead of Mark Harris in the pecking order.

That said, the Tottenham loanee’s quartet of goals have come from an xG of just 0.8, a stark improvement on Harris’ four goals from an xG of 4.9.

Against Leeds on Saturday, Oxford will have to be clinical in attack, and Scarlett might be the best option they have.

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Joel Piroe vs Elliott Moore

Piroe was clearly off the boil at Preston and should be back to his best against Oxford.

The Dutchman is the Whites’ top scorer this term with seven goals and has registered a further three assists, with the forward on course to beat his tally of 14 goals from last season.

Considering his obvious poaching instincts — those seven goals have come from just 13 shots on target — Oxford will need to keep a close eye on him to prevent any clear-cut chances.

One man who will be key in this regard is Elliott Moore.

Oxford’s club captain has had a busy time in defence of late, with an average of seven clearances and three aerial duels won per match.

Unfortunately, Moore has picked up six yellow cards in the process and will have to be very disciplined at Elland Road if Oxford are to get anything from the game.

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Ao Tanaka vs Tyler Goodrham

At the heart of Leeds’ midfield is the tough-tackling Tanaka, who has quickly endeared himself to Whites fans following his summer transfer thanks to some brilliant performances.

In addition to making the second-most tackles (23) and interceptions (19) in the squad, the Japan international offers a superb passing accuracy of 92%.

Alongside his midfield partner Joe Rothwell, Tanaka is often charged with bringing the ball out from the backline and does so with aplomb.

The man who will attempt to evade Tanaka is Goodrham.

An attacking midfielder by trade, the industrious Wycombe native has created 22 chances (a squad high), won 23 tackles, made 15 interceptions, and earned 22 fouls courtesy of his nimble footwork.

Still only 21, it has been a wonderful season so far for the Oxford academy product.

Ultimately, given the great form that both Tanaka and Goodrham are in, it is all set to be an intriguing midfield battle at Elland Road on Saturday.

Summary

On paper, this appears to be a routine home win for the Whites. Farke will also be desperate to make up for yet more dropped points on the road.

Whether or not Oxford benefit from a new-manager bounce remains to be seen, but their defence will nevertheless need to be on top form to contain a classy Whites frontline for 90 minutes.

Score prediction: Leeds United 3-0 Oxford United