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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Sport
Lawrence Ostlere

Leeds v Liverpool live: Hugo Ekitike strikes as Premier League champions try to revive failing season

Liverpool travel to Leeds for today’s late Premier League kick off hoping to reignite their winning form after a terrible run has seen them lose nine of their last 14 games.

Arne Slot’s men have struggled of late and a 2-0 victory over West Ham proved a false dawn as they drew 1-1 with Sunderland last time out in a rather lacklustre performance.

The manager benched the underperforming Mo Salah for both of those fixtures and the 33-year-old is a substitute once again today.

Leeds meanwhile are hovering just outside the relegation zone and sit two points ahead of 18th placed West Ham coming into the weekend. But, Daniel Farke’s men enjoyed a huge boost in a stunning 3-1 win over high-fliers Chelsea on Wednesday and the manager will be hoping to replicate that form again today.

Follow all the action, build-up and team news with our live blog below:

Leeds vs Liverpool live

  • Leeds host Liverpool in the Premier League with kick off at 5.30pm | Live on Sky Sports
  • Leeds: Perri, Bogle, Rodon, Bijol, Struijk, Gudmundsson, Gruev, Ampadu, Stach, Calvert-Lewin, Okafor
  • Liverpool make four changes but Salah and Isak both on the bench
  • Liverpool: Alisson, Bradley, Konate, van Dijk, Kerkez, Jones, Gravenberch, Wirtz, Szoboszlai, Gakpo, Ekitike
  • GOAL! Leeds 0-1 Liverpool (Ekitike, 48 mins)
  • GOAL! Leeds 0-2 Liverpool (Ekitike, 51 mins)

Leeds 0-2 Liverpool

18:44 , Richard Jolly at Elland Road

Richard Jolly at Elland Road:

Two goals in three minutes. Hugo Ekitike had got too little service from his teammates so Joe Rodon generously donated the opener. Conor Bradley made the second, with a strong challenge on Gabriel Gudmundsson. For once, the defensive errors have not come from Liverpool

GOAL! Leeds 0-2 Liverpool (Ekitike, 51 mins)

18:43 , Lawrence Ostlere

Another!! It’s a lovely cross by Conor Bradley and Ekitike knocks it home. It’s checked by VAR, and the striker is just onside.

GOAL! Leeds 0-1 Liverpool (Ekitike, 48 mins)

18:41 , Lawrence Ostlere

What a start to the second half – Hugo Ekitike pounces on a Joe Rodon mistake and puts Liverpool in front! He had to escape a couple of defenders there, wonderfully done.

Half-time: Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

18:32 , Lawrence Ostlere

The players are back out for the second half. Will there be any changes?

Liverpool's balance still off

18:26 , Richard Jolly at Elland Road

Richard Jolly at Elland Road:

Quite an uneventful first half after that early flurry of chances for Leeds. While Curtis Jones hit the bar, a concern for Liverpool should be that they have not had enough creativity. They are trying to be more solid - one reason why Mo Salah was dropped - but they haven't got the right balance.

Half-time: Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

18:20 , Lawrence Ostlere

All square at the break, and not a lot to choose between the teams. Hopefully a better 45 minutes to come.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

18:19 , Lawrence Ostlere

45 min: Conor Bradley is booked for a late sliding challenge. That will earn him a suspension, as it’s his fifth yellow card of the season.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

18:14 , Lawrence Ostlere

41 min: Liverpool come forwards down the right but the link up between Wirtz and Ekitike is off, and then the latter is penalised for a foul.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

18:11 , Lawrence Ostlere

38 min: Gakpo gets a shot off on the counterattack but it’s deflected wide. Corner.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

18:10 , Lawrence Ostlere

36 min: Struijk tries to get a shot off from a corner but misses the target.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

18:05 , Lawrence Ostlere

31 min: Cody Gakpo clips in a cross but it doesn’t find a Liverpool shirt.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

17:58 , Richard Jolly at Elland Road

Richard Jolly at Elland Road:

Another moment of indecision from Virgil van Dijk a couple of minutes back. It is as though errors and uncertainty in the Liverpool defence have become contagious this season.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

17:52 , Lawrence Ostlere

20 min: Szoboszlai’s free-kick flies over the bar.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

17:51 , Lawrence Ostlere

18 min: Leeds have a corner which pings around in the box, but Liverpool manage to clear and burst forwards with Ekitike. He finds Gakpo who is fouled by Bogle, and that’s a yellow card.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

17:47 , Lawrence Ostlere

13 min: Liverpool put on the pressure. Curtis Jones tries a curling effort it bounces back off the bar! Great effort from outside the box.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

17:43 , Lawrence Ostlere

9 min: Milos Kerkez has fired a shot off target, as Liverpool make a rare foray forwards. Moments later, Ekitike takes a bit of a whack in the face and wants a penalty, but it’s not happening.

Leeds hunting Liverpool early

17:38 , Richard Jolly at Elland Road

Richard Jolly at Elland Road:

Three early efforts from Leeds, showing they are carrying on where they left off against Chelsea, and perhaps also that they feel Liverpool could be vulnerable. It always seemed likely that Leeds could be quite direct and look for set-pieces. The first few minutes have been no shock in that respect.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

17:36 , Lawrence Ostlere

5 min: Gudmundsson now gets a shot away, but misses the target. Elland Road is noisy tonight.

Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

17:34 , Lawrence Ostlere

2 min: An early chance for Noah Okafor, who pulls his shot just wide of the far post. Liverpool immediately under pressure.

Kick-off! Leeds 0-0 Liverpool

17:33 , Lawrence Ostlere

Underway in Yorkshire.

Leeds v Liverpool

17:29 , Lawrence Ostlere

The players are out on the pitch at Elland Road. Kick-off is moments away...

Slot responds to Salah question

17:22 , Lawrence Ostlere

Kick-off is less than 10 minutes away. Here’s Arne Slot, explaining (or not) his decision to leave out Mohamed Salah once again: “It’s never an easy decision because we all know what a great player he is. But it is also up to me to pick the team that I think we need today. That’s why I made the decision.”

A bad time to face Leeds?

17:17 , Richard Jolly at Elland Road

Here’s Richard Jolly at Elland Road:

Mohamed Salah takes his now familiar place on the bench even as Arne Slot makes four changes. It is no shock to see Alexander Isak among the substitutes, with Slot still cautious about the Swede's fitness. Conor Bradley was expected back in the squad but it is safe to say many did not think he would start today. For Liverpool, this could be a bad time to face Leeds, who are fresh from defeating Chelsea.

Virgil van Dijk details how Florian Wirtz can ignite Liverpool career after latest setback

17:10 , Chris Wilson

If few know what it has been like to be Florian Wirtz in the last few months, Virgil van Dijk probably has a better idea than most, and not merely because he is a Liverpool FC teammate. The Dutchman has been there: signed for a supersized fee, with sky-high expectations, arriving from a smaller club to be plunged into the spotlight as Liverpool’s record buy. Wirtz became Liverpool’s first £100m man. Yet Van Dijk’s cost might have stood out still more: some £75m, making him the most expensive defender in history when he joined in 2018.

But there their paths diverged. Van Dijk ranked as an immediate success. He scored a late winner on his Liverpool debut; to compound it, it was a Merseyside derby. Wirtz got an assist four minutes into his Liverpool career but it was in a Community Shield that was lost. After 18 games and four months, he still has not scored. Even when he thought he did, Liverpool’s equaliser against Sunderland on Wednesday was instead deemed a Nordi Mukiele own goal.

Van Dijk details how Wirtz can ignite Liverpool career after latest setback

Betting Offer

17:05 , Staff Writer

If betting is your thing, online bookmakers Parimatch are offering new customers 40/1 on Leeds to score against Liverpool this evening, which will may be of appeal to some punters given Liverpool’s defensive woes this season. Important to note the maximum bet is £1 and winnings are paid out in free bets.

We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. (The Independent)

Head-to-head

16:50 , Chris Wilson

These two sides have met 100 times in the past, with Liverpool winning 54, Leeds winning 23 and 23 ending as draws.

They last met in the 2022/23 Premier League season, where the Reds fell to a 2-1 loss at home before winning 6-1 away in April 2023.

Arne Slot rebuffs Alexander Isak criticism with Erling Haaland comparison

16:40 , Chris Wilson

Arne Slot has rebuffed criticism of Alexander Isak’s lack of involvement for Liverpool by drawing comparisons to the Premier League’s most prolific striker, Erling Haaland.

British record signing Isak is yet to prove his worth at Liverpool and only boasts two goals in 12 appearances, with it taking until last weekend for the Swede to finally notch his first Premier League strike of the season.

But unlike fellow £100m man Florian Wirtz, there have been little signs of improvement in terms of Isak’s wider play, often struggling to get involved in Liverpool’s attacking moves.

Arne Slot rebuffs Alexander Isak criticism with Erling Haaland comparison

Leeds team news

16:35 , Lawrence Ostlere

Daniel Farke makes two changes to his Leeds team, as Ilia Gruev and Noah Okafor come into the starting XI.

Liverpool team news

16:29 , Lawrence Ostlere

So Arne Slot makes four changes to the team who drew with Sunderland in midweek, and yet Salah is on the bench for the third game in a row. Isak is there too, as Ekitike comes into the attack alongside Gakpo and Wirtz. Bradley, Jones and Kerkez also come into the Liverpool team.

Mohamed Salah arrives at Elland Road (Action Images via Reuters)

Confirmed line-ups – no Salah again!

16:21 , Lawrence Ostlere

Leeds: Perri, Bogle, Rodon, Bijol, Struijk, Gudmundsson, Gruev, Ampadu, Stach, Calvert-Lewin, Okafor.

Subs: Darlow, Byram, Justin, Bonauw, Tanaka, Harrison, Aaronson, Gnonto, Piroe.

Liverpool: Alisson, Bradley, Konate, van Dijk, Kerkez, Jones, Gravenberch, Wirtz, Szoboszlai, Gakpo, Ekitike.

Subs: Mamardashvili, Gomez, Endo, Isak, Mac Allister, Salah, Chiesa, Robertson, Ngumoha.

Team news

16:10 , Chris Wilson

The line-ups will be released in the next five minutes, so here’s reminder of the early team news for both sides...

Leeds have no further injury concerns after the win over Chelsea, with only Daniel James and Sean Longstaff missing. James Justin was a substitute on Wednesday and could push for a starting spot after returning from injury.

Liverpool may be able to call on Conor Bradley as he returns from a muscle issue, which would be a welcome boost after their recent defensive woes.

All eyes will be on the team sheets as Mohamed Salah was benched for back-to-back games at West Ham and against Sunderland, with the Egyptian brought off the bench against the Black Cats but unable to produce his magic of old.

Dominik Szoboszlai hits out at ‘unacceptable’ Liverpool situation

16:00 , Chris Wilson

Dominik Szoboszlai believes Liverpool’s current plight is unacceptable and admitted they have a lot of work to do to get back to winning ways.

Liverpool have lost nine of their last 14 games in all competitions, including six of their nine most recent in the Premier League, and Szoboszlai feels they cannot think about a top-four finish at the moment.

Liverpool go to Leeds on Saturday after drawing 1-1 with Sunderland at Anfield, meaning they have not won in their last three matches at home.

Dominik Szoboszlai hits out at ‘unacceptable’ Liverpool situation

When is Leeds v Liverpool?

15:50 , Chris Wilson

Leeds host Liverpool at Elland Road on Saturday 6 December, with kick-off at 5.30pm.

How can I watch it?

Viewers in the UK can watch the game on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League. If you’re not a Sky customer, you can grab a NOWTV Day Pass here to watch without a subscription.

Predicted line-ups

15:41 , Chris Wilson

Leeds XI: Perri; Rodon, Bijol, Struijk; Bogle, Stach, Tanaka, Ampadu, Gudmundsson; Calvert-Lewin, Nmecha

Liverpool XI: Alisson; Bradley, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Jones; Salah, Wirtz, Chiesa; Ekitike

Liverpool team news

15:37 , Chris Wilson

Liverpool may be able to call on Conor Bradley as he returns from a muscle issue, which would be a welcome boost after their recent defensive woes.

All eyes will be on the team sheets as Mohamed Salah was benched for back-to-back games at West Ham and against Sunderland, with the Egyptian brought off the bench against the Black Cats but unable to produce his magic of old.

Leeds team news

15:33 , Chris Wilson

Leeds have no further injury concerns after the win over Chelsea, with only Daniel James and Sean Longstaff missing. James Justin was a substitute on Wednesday and could push for a starting spot after returning from injury.

Good afternoon

15:30 , Chris Wilson

Leeds face Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday in a clash which could be surprisingly close given the respective fortunes of both teams at the start of the season.

While Leeds are hovering just outside the relegation zone, two points clear of 18th-placed West Ham, Daniel Farke’s men enjoyed a huge boost in a stunning 3-1 win over high-fliers Chelsea on Wednesday.

Elland Road proved a fortress against the Blues as Jaka Bijol, Ao Tanaka and Dominic Calvert-Lewin sealed a noteworthy win. Farke will be hoping for more of the same against a Liverpool side who only just avoided a 10th defeat in 14 games by scraping a point against Sunderland last time out.

Arne Slot remains under huge pressure despite that 1-1 draw and Liverpool will be hoping they can reproduce the result from their last visit to a relegation-threatened side, West Ham.

Leeds v Liverpool

15:22 , Lawrence Ostlere

Hello and welcome to live coverage of Leeds v Liverpool in the Premier League.

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