An inconsistent Manchester United travel to Elland Road to take on an improved Leeds United with 10 places and nine points separating the two. Will the visitors take another crack at entering the top four, or will Leeds push further away from the danger of the relegation places.

Here’s everything you need to know about the match:

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How to watch

The match will be broadcast on TNT Sports in the UK, NBC Sports in the U.S., JioHotstar in India and Stan Sport in Australia. You can also follow ESPN’s live updates.

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Key Details

Kick-off time: Sunday, Jan 4 at 12.30 p.m. GMT (7.30 p.m. ET; 6.00 p.m. IST and 11.30 p.m. AEDT)

Venue: Elland Road, Leeds

Referee: Jarred Gillet

VAR: James Bell

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Injury and Team News

Manchester United

Amad Diallo, D/M, OUT – AFCON
Noussair Mazraoui, D, OUT – AFCON
Bryan Mbeumo, F, OUT – AFCON
Bruno Fernandes, M, OUT – hamstring
Kobbie Mainoo, M, OUT – calf
Harry Maguire, D, DOUBT – knock
Matthijs de Ligt, D, DOUBT – knock

Leeds United

Ethan Ampadu, M, OUT – suspended
Joe Rodon, D, OUT – ankle
Sean Longstaff, M, DOUBT – calf
Daniel James, F, OUT – hamstring

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Talking Points

Why did Ruben Amorim go back to 3-4-2-1?

For most of their previous match against Newcastle United, Manchester United played in a new (for their head coach) 4-2-3-1 formation that did two things: mask the gaps caused by injuries and AFCON departures plus put players in positions which suited their skillsets. The result was an excellent performance until the now standard Amorim defensive changes allowed Newcastle a route back into the game (which they didn’t take).

Against Wolves on Tuesday, Amorim returned to his pet 3-4-2-1/3-4-3 and the team looked immediately poorer for it. Pushing Patrick Dorgu out to left wing-back after a superb outing at right wing felt counter-intuitive, as did pushing Joshua Zirkzee out onto the right wing and forcing play to be dictated in the middle by Manuel Ugarte and Casemiro. Amorim’s substitutions were questionable too — such as pushing Jack Fletcher (a central midfielder in the mould of his father and club veteran Darren) out wide and taking out the impressive Ayden Heaven for another centre-back in Leny Yoro when United were chasing a winner. That Wolves, toothless all season long, created more xG in the 1-1 draw shows just how ineffective the reset-to-default move was.

What will we now see at Elland Road?

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Has Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s momentum been broken?

As decisions go, Daniel Farke’s call to rest Calvert-Lewin at Anfield was up there in difficulty with any he’s taken since taking charge of Leeds. Having scored seven goals in his last six games, the former Everton man seemed primed to put the hurt on Liverpool, but he was rested, and that put an end to his consecutive game scoring streak. In the 20 minutes he was on the pitch, though, he had a goal ruled out for offside; and made Leeds look a better attacking outfit with him as the focal point up top.

After the match, Farke defended his decision by saying: “Sometimes, the head has to win over the heart. We had four Premier League fixtures in 10 days, and I have to trust my whole squad. We know what happened to Dominic in the last few years with injuries.”

Thinking from that perspective, benching him makes perfect sense… but will the break in play jar the striker’s impressive momentum?

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Matheus Cunha needs to sharpen his finishing

No one takes more shots per 90 for Manchester United than Cunha: 3.9. Of the top shot takers, he’s also got the worst conversion rate at 5.8%… and that’s a problem.

Now, Cunha’s strengths are undoubted — his dribbling carries United up the field on a consistent basis, and his willingness to take shots often creates plenty of chaos around him — but if he can only finish 5.8% of the time he takes a shot, that’s a bunch of good attacking possession that’s being wasted by United. In the absence of top scorers Bryan Mbuemo and Bruno Fernandes, Cunha needed to step up — but his tardiness in front of goal has continued.

He’s rarely going to pass the ball from shooting positions as much as United fans appear to want him to (that’s not what he does as was so evident at Wolves last season, and ought not have been what he was signed up for), but the only way that works out is if he sharpens his finishing.

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Leeds’ low block could lock up visitors

After the goalless draw at Anfield, Farke said: “The lads defended well and didn’t allow clear-cut chances. It’s always important to be rock-solid against the ball and keep a clean sheet.” It was their clean sheet since late August and will give them confidence even as they take on the league’s third highest scorers.

For even with their improvement this season form the last (low bar as it may be), United have struggled to break down disciplined low blocks of the like Leeds set up with against Liverpool. Wolves, learning their lessons from the reverse fixture, set up low at Old Trafford, pressed high only sporadically and saw wave after wave of toothless United attack break harmlessly on their defensive lines.

Its on such days that they sorely miss the lockpicking skills of Bruno Fernandes and with the United talisman likely to be out for a bit longer, they need to find alternate solutions, and fast.

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What do the numbers say?

• Not a good one for Leeds fans: they have won just one of their last 19 Prem games against Manchester United (D6 L12)

• Man United like playing promoted sides. In fact, they are unbeaten in their last 25 Prem games against such opponents. The last time they lost one was a 4-1 loss at Watford in 2021 – United fans will recgonise that as the result which immediately preceded the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

• One for the Leeds fans: Man United have never beaten their club when facing them in their first league game of a calendar year, drawing 0-0 in 1931, 1-1 in 1958, 0-0 in 1994, and losing 2-1 in 1969.

• Man United have conceded at least once in each of their last 14 league away games. They last had a longer run without an away league clean sheet between September 1985 and April 1986 (15).

• Dominic Calvert-Lewin has scored in each of his last three Prem home games, the last Leeds player to score in four in succession was Mark Viduka (2004).