Mighty Leeds Weblog

By Stuart Rayner What went around came around at Elland Road on Saturday as Leeds United did to Fulham what the Cottagers did to them in September. Fulham won that game 1-0 with a stoppage-time goal.; this time it was Lukas Nmecha who left it late for the team in white. Unlike in the reverse fixture, Leeds could this time feel that justice was done over the course of 90-plus minutes. Leeds came into the game off the back of five draws in eight Premier League games. Some of those were good results, some of those excellent, but 0-0 at home to Fulham felt like a wasted opportunity, particularly in light of how Leeds played. Where Daniel Farke made substitutions to try to win the game, Fulham's players plodded off as slowly as possible when Marco Silva made 88th-minute alterations. It looked like his efforts were going to be in vain until Nmecha stretched to volley in an Ethan Ampadu cross just as the fourth official was signalling a minimum of four added minutes. But t...

Yorath made 199 appearances for Leeds during a nine-year spell. By Mark Walker, Press Association Gabby Logan was at Elland Road on Saturday as Leeds paid tribute to her father and their former player Terry Yorath before their Premier League game at home to Fulham. Yorath died last week aged 75 and there was a minute’s applause ahead of kick-off, while Leeds players wore black armbands in honour of the former Wales midfielder, who also went on to manage his country. Sports broadcaster Logan posted a poignant message on Instagram on Friday. Her son Reuben could make his senior rugby union debut for Sale on Saturday after being named in the squad to face Toulouse in the Champions Cup and, alongside a picture of Yorath with the 20-year-old and his twin sister Lois, Logan wrote: “Good luck tomorrow Reuben Logan. Someone is on your shoulder.” Yorath made 199 appearances for Leeds during nine years at the club, scoring 11 goals, and won the old First Division in 1974, plus earned...

The pivotal moment that sparked Leeds' revolution under Daniel Farke - and how unity and resilience has become the club's greatest strength, writes DOMINIC KING By DOMINIC KING It would not be viewed as a sensible starting point for a conversation, to get a Premier League ­manager shaking his head and disagreeing firmly, but here we are. Daniel Farke does not see the significance but the moment we are discussing felt huge — November 23, Elland Road; Leeds 1 Aston Villa 2. Farke had asked pre-match for the mood to be ‘us against the world’ but by the end, after a fifth defeat in six games, it seemed like it was him against them. He walked slowly in front of the Kop, clapping them as he always does but as he looked back, Farke only saw angry faces. Those who had been ­bellowing: ‘Make a sub! Make a sub!’ during the contest had changed their tone to: ‘You don’t know what you’re doing!’ as the German moved along. ‘I wouldn’t over-interpretate the situation and I wouldn’...

By Graham Smyth Reports suggesting Leeds United are in talks with Celtic over a loan move for Joel Piroe are wide of the mark, the YEP understands. Piroe is a wanted man this month thanks to his Golden Boot exploits in the Championship last season and a finishing ability that his manager Daniel Farke describes as world class. Match minutes have been harder and harder to come by for Piroe at Leeds, however, thanks to the goalscoring form and performances of Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Farke has preferred Lukas Nmecha and Noah Okafor as second strikers, with Piroe settling for a place on the bench. Despite his current frustrations, Piroe is said to be determined to stay at Elland Road and prove his worth in the top flight. But there is significant interest in his services. A host of clubs in the Championship and abroad would like to prise him from Leeds, but the Whites insist they are not pushing him towards the exit door in January. A report emerged on Friday north of the border sugg...

Make it make sense Written by: Chris McMenamy Howard Wilkinson took one look at Leeds United in December 1992 and decided that a change was as good as a rest. The reigning champions of England were 18th in the newly founded Premier League, having picked up only three points from eleven away matches all season. Sgt Wilko felt the perfect solution to their travelling yips was to go away to Italy, in the middle of a gameweek in early January. Wilkinson felt that Florence, city of the Renaissance, might just be the place for his players to rediscover what made them the best team in the country the previous season. They weren’t there to study the paintings in the Uffizi Gallery, nor stare awkwardly at the statue of David, but to take part in the allegedly prestigious Trofeo Kenwood, which doesn’t need translating. The allure of facing both Fiorentina and Inter Milan encouraged Leeds to drag their full squad to Tuscany for two 45-minute matches on a Wednesday night. Being paid £200,000...

By Graham Smyth One of Leeds United's key summer signings has been rewarded for hitting the 'form of his life' in December with the Premier League Player of the Month award. Dominic Calvert-Lewin's importance to Leeds was never more evident than in the final month of 2025. The centre forward had already scored at the Etihad in Leeds' last game of November and went on a remarkable scoring streak that inspired songs from the club's fanbase and helped the team stay unbeaten for the entire month of December. Calvert-Lewin helped himself to six goals in the month's five games, including a brace against Crystal Palace at Elland Road, as Leeds picked up two huge wins and three draws. His best run of goalscoring form for five years was enough to outscore everyone else in the English top flight and put to bed any of the summer question marks around his free agent move to Elland Road. Calvert-Lewin beat Man City stars Rayan Cherki, who helped himself to a goal...

Leeds United are delighted to announce the arrival of Facundo Buonanotte on a loan deal until the end of the 2025/26 Premier League campaign. The Whites have secured the services of the Argentinian international for the remainder of the season, joining from fellow top-flight side Brighton & Hove Albion. Beginning his career in his home nation with Rosario Central where he made 32 appearances, the Seagulls moved swiftly to bring Buonanotte to England shortly after he turned 18-years-old. He then featured regularly at the AMEX Stadium by playing 50 times across all competitions, before heading out on loan for further experience. Last season, he made a temporary switch to Leicester City and was a standout player in a struggling Foxes side, playing 35 times across all competitions, scoring six times and assisting on three occasions. The forward, who now has over 125 first team appearances under his belt, has been on loan Chelsea during the first half of this season, featuring...

By Graham Smyth The Leeds United boss is expected to welcome a loan signing through the door soon. Leeds United boss Daniel Farke's thoughts on a squad vacancy have not changed despite the team's upturn in fortunes, as they close in on a deal for Facundo Buonanotte. Leeds are close to completing a loan move for Buonanotte, who was a summer target and very nearly joined the club in the previous transfer window. A flight was booked for the Argentine attacker in order to sign on loan from Brighton and Hove Albion, before Chelsea hijacked the move with an offer that boasted Champions League football. But four and a half months on the 21-year-old has played 45 minutes of Premier League football and made two starts in Europe. Leeds began to discuss the possibility of revisiting the loan in late December and the YEP understands the first conversation dealt with what happened in the summer, with Whites recruitment chiefs happy to put it behind them and forge on towards a second...

By BEN WILLCOCKS, ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR Facundo Buonanotte's loan from Brighton to Chelsea is set to be cancelled mid-season, paving the way for him to swap and play for Leeds United. The west London club agreed a surprise loan deal with Brighton last summer to sign Buonanotte for the season, despite having one of the most bloated squads in the Premier League and several young players already fighting it out for game time. Despite paying Brighton £2million to acquire Buonanotte for the season, Chelsea are set to terminate the Argentina international's deal with immediate effect after only giving him a handful of games at Stamford Bridge. Buonanotte, 21, has only started one match in the Premier League so far this campaign - a 45 minute appearance against Brentford in September - and played a total of eight games across all competitions for Chelsea. Although poised to move back to Brighton, who viewed him as surplus to requirements at the start of the season, Buonano...

The 17-year-old will play in League One for Rotherham United for the remainder of the season following Harry Gray's impressive form in the Leeds United academy Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter Leeds United have confirmed that Harry Gray has joined Rotherham United on loan for the rest of the 2025/26 season. As revealed by Leeds Live last week, United were open to loan offers for Gray should the player himself have indicated a desire to pursue such an opportunity. Rotherham, who are "thrilled" to acquire Gray, currently lie in the League One relegation zone, five points away from safety. The Millers have 22 games left to play in their season, providing ample opportunity for Gray to make his mark. The 17-year-old, who signed his first professional contract in October, has not made a senior appearance since his debut against Stoke City last April. The youngster - the brother of Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Archie - was taken on the club’s pre-season tour by Dani...

Harrison looks set to leave Leeds United this month but he will still be on their PSR books amid the club's spending-limit headache Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter It was always going to be an uphill battle for Jack Harrison at Leeds United when he signed his new five-year contract in April 2023. At the time, few outsiders knew that the club had agreed to insert a loan clause into his deal. They soon did when he decided to join Everton after United’s relegation - and again after they failed to regain promotion via the play-offs. The whole idea of the clause, for the player’s sake, was to protect his status and value as a top flight talent. That mission has failed. Underwhelming seasons at Everton led to the Toffees opting not to offer him another return. Upon his initial switch to Everton then-Leeds CEO Angus Kinnear outlined how the move had lifted his wage burden off the books and that those who had left on loan were not ‘regretted losses’. How apt it is, then, that...

By Kyle Newbould A fresh report claims one Leeds United fringe player could be on his way out of Elland Road this month. Out-of-favour Leeds United winger Jack Harrison has emerged as a potential January transfer target for Serie A side Fiorentina, according to reports in Italy. Harrison has spent the first-half of the 2025/26 campaign on the fringes of first-team football at Leeds, having returned from a loan spell at Everton over summer. The winger has made 11 Premier League appearances but started just once, and that came at Burnley when other options were all injured. Sunday’s FA Cup tie at Derby provided an opportunity for Harrison to impress but despite playing the full 90 minutes in a 3-1 win, he struggled to get going. And the 29-year-old has now been linked with a January move away from Elland Road amid reported interest from Italy. Journalist Gianluca Di Marzio reports that Harrison is being eyed by Fiorentina as they attempt to strengthen their attacking ranks. The...

Book the hotel Words by: Chris McMenamy Leeds United flexed their Premier League muscle deep in injury time at Derby County. Sean Longstaff’s smart pass set Lukas Nmecha off down the left wing, and the big lad’s sumptuous outside of the boot cross found none other than substitute right-back James Justin, piling into the box like Stuart Dallas at Stoke to poke the ball under the Derby goalkeeper to seal a 3-1 win. If ever Leeds United needed reminding just how important it is to survive in the Premier League, a midday kick-off at Pride Park was enough to do the trick. Though the FA Cup third round holds a different mystique than the Championship, the premise of a smaller club psyching themselves up to beat the Peacocks still stands. A much-changed Leeds side actually managed to progress into the next round despite trailing 1-0 at half-time and Jacob Zetterström saving Joël Piroe’s 33rd-minute penalty. It doesn’t tend to go like that. TNT Sports’ commentary team of Mike Minay and...

By Graham Smyth Good day, bad day and off camera moments from Leeds United's FA Cup victory over Derby County on Sunday. Leeds United did the professional Premier League thing at Derby County, eventually, to book an FA Cup fourth round berth. The Whites made heavy weather of the first half at Pride Park before goals from Willy Gnonto, Ao Tanaka and James Justin put them in the hat for Monday evening's draw. Here's the YEP take. Good day: James Justin. The full-back has had to bide his time thanks to Jayden Bogle, but this was another impactful performance from Justin, capped with a lovely goal. Given what he's produced of late, Justin can claim to be the form man and the 'hot hand' at right-back or right wing-back going into the Fulham game, whether or not Bogle is fit to return. Good day: Willy Gnonto. The winger wasn't perfect by any stretch but he needed that goal. It has been a frustrating season and though he's come off the bench to play...

By Graham Smyth The Verdict on Leeds United’s comeback 3-1 FA Cup win at Derby County. The best case scenario for Leeds United at Derby County was to avoid an upset, preserve momentum and maybe breathe life into a fringe player or two. If the strength of the Leeds squad that arrived at Pride Park raised eyebrows it was just the start of the surprises. Daniel Farke went with a much stronger XI than many would have predicted, keeping Ethan Ampadu and Jaka Bijol in an exclusively senior line-up. The only sign of the 'kids' was the inclusion of Sam Chambers on the bench. And where John Eustace might have been hoping or expecting to come up against the 4-2-3-1 formation he was so successful against in the past, he found himself facing a back three. Ampadu dropped into the defence to partner Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw. There was no magic in the cup tie's opening 10 minutes, in which both sides traded set-pieces and neither profited. No one was able to dominate possessio...

Sunday will have done little to sway Daniel Farke's mind on several aspects of his Leeds United team Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter Macclesfield Town’s giant killing of Crystal Palace meant Leeds United were never going to be the story of the weekend with a defeat, but Sunday's tie with Derby County was still important for momentum and overall morale. After Wednesday’s heartbreak at Newcastle United, it was key that Leeds showed resolve, resilience to bounce back and a spine. The first half was very forgettable but the second half displayed the mentality that was required from a team that should be beating a mid-table Championship outfit. Even when going in a goal down, Leeds will have felt they had the upper hand due to the chances they created. The scoreline of 3-1, courtesy of James Justin’s stoppage time goal, better reflected the real gap between the two sides in the second half. Momentum is key and any win obviously is conducive for that. It gives encourage...

By Kyle Newbould Lessons learned from a gutsy performance as Leeds United booked their place in the FA Cup fourth round draw. Leeds United booked their place in the FA Cup fourth round draw with a come-from-behind 3-1 win at Derby County on Sunday. Goals from Willy Gnonto, Ao Tanaka and James Justin capped off a much-improved second-half performance from the Premier League outfit, whose quality shone through eventually. Ben Brereton Diaz opened the scoring for Derby just minutes after a missed Joel Piroe penalty but Leeds rallied well, showing an impressive combination of fight and quality to defeat their Championship hosts. Below are some of the YEP’s key lessons learned from the victory. Karl Darlow takes his chance A large part of the pre-game chat surrounded goalkeepers, more specifically whether Karl Darlow should replace Lucas Perri on a more permanent note following some recent mistakes by the latter. Farke has been hesitant to chop and change the position where stabil...

Derby 1-3 Leeds: Premier League side produce impressive second-half comeback — as Daniel Farke dares to dream of FA Cup glory By ROSS HEPPENSTALL Daniel Farke has not always been fully trusted by sections of the Leeds United fanbase but the scenes at the end of this comfortable win told a story. As the German's name was belted out with gusto by over 5,000 travelling supporters, Farke marched over to them, punched the air and thumped his chest. Eight points clear of the relegation places with 17 games remaining, belief grows that Leeds can aim higher than mere survival this season. Maybe, just maybe, they can have a serious crack at FA Cup glory too. At least that was the way Farke was talking after his much-changed side ultimately reached the fourth round at a canter. The 49-year-old is a dreamer and, having guided Leeds to promotion last season, sparking wild scenes during an open top bus parade around the city, he is aiming even higher. After second-half goals from ...

Farke saw his side come from behind to win at Derby. Mark Walker Leeds boss Daniel Farke said he wants to go “as far as possible” in this season’s FA Cup after his side’s comfortable 3-1 third-round win at Derby. Quickfire second-half goals from Willy Gnonto and Ao Tanaka turned the tie in Leeds’ favour after they had trailed at half-time to Beb Brereton Diaz’s opener for Derby. Brereton Diaz struck against the run of play soon after Leeds striker Joel Piroe had seen his penalty saved, while substitute James Justin rubberstamped the visitors’ progression with his first goal for the club in added time. Farke said: “I’m a big believer in cup competitions. I know some people see them as a distraction from the league, but I love cup competitions. “We want to try to come as far as possible in the FA Cup, otherwise we would have sent a different team out today. We wanted to travel with the strongest possible squad without taking any risks.” Farke made eight changes after his si...

By Graham Smyth The Leeds United boss saw his side come from behind to beat Derby County in the FA Cup. Leeds United's win at Derby County wasn't exactly magical but boss Daniel Farke says it could be the start of an FA Cup fairytale. The German went with a strong squad to face the Championship outfit at Pride Park and though they made heavy weather of the first half and went in a goal down, they ran out 3-1 winners after a dominant second half. Goals from Willy Gnonto, Ao Tanaka and James Justin took the tie away from the Rams and sent Leeds into the fourth round. "Very happy," said Farke. "Congratulations to my players for progressing against a Derby side who was competitive and showed a good performance. I was sure it was 50:50 today, of course you're the favourite but Derby have shown against top sides at Championship level that it's difficult to be successful here. We had to rotate a bit today, they had no midweek game. I think we needed 20 m...

By Kyle Newbould Leeds United progressed to the fourth round of the FA Cup with victory at Pride Park. Leeds United kicked off their 2025/26 FA Cup campaign with a come-from-behind 3-1 win at Derby County on Sunday. Second-half goals from Willy Gnonto, Ao Tanaka and James Justin booked the Whites a place in the fourth round draw after Ben Brereton Diaz opened the scoring for Derby. A much-rotated Leeds side struggled to get going but improved after the break and were deserving of their victory. Noah Okafor had the first decent opening of the game inside 10 minutes after Gnonto’s break down the right. His into the box was diverted to the Swiss international whose curled attempt from 20 yards flew over. Defender Craig Forsyth then had Derby’s first real chance, meeting a deep out-swinging free-kick between Jaka Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw but heading wide. Corey Blackett-Taylor then had an effort deflect into the hands of Karl Darlow as the home side improved. Leeds had a gr...