A year ago, everything was about to unravel at Leeds.
The positivity of promotion was soon extinguished when, between October 4th and November 11th, the Whites lost six of their seven games. They shipped 16 goals during that time frame.
Daniel Farke was destined for the sack but the German has turned things around in quite some style. The switch to a three-at-the-back formation has worked wonders.
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Leeds’ worst run of form in 2025/26 |
|
|---|---|
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Opposition |
Result |
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Spurs (H) |
1-2 |
|
Burnley (A) |
2-0 |
|
West Ham (H) |
2-1 |
|
Brighton (A) |
3-0 |
|
Nottingham Forest (A) |
3-1 |
|
Aston Villa (H) |
1-2 |
|
Man City (A) |
3-2 |
Since that run of form they have lost just six matches in the Premier League, including their 2-1 defeat to Arsenal last Saturday.
The biggest winners from Leeds’ defeat to Arsenal
What a difference a year makes, eh?
Speaking after that game at the weekend, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was quick to praise their opponents. “We knew it was going to be really tough”, the Spaniard began.
Arteta continued: “We had to face the challenge because it’s a team that hasn’t lost in the Premier League and they are in a great position because they fully deserved it.”
So, while Leeds may still not have won away at Arsenal since May 2003, this was arguably their finest performance at the Gunners since then.
The Whites are a different side now. They’re so organised, so well drilled. It was James Justin who scored the opener but his defensive colleagues in the form of Gabriel Gudmundsson and Tarik Muharemovic deserved enormous praise too.
Having dealt with the threat of Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz with relative ease, their stock has certainly risen.
Likewise, this was a fine afternoon for Dominic Calvert-Lewin, even if he didn’t score. His hold-up play was exceptional. Not many strikers can take a game to Gabriel Magalhaes as he did at the weekend.
Despite failing to secure any points, it was a positive day overall for Leeds but not everyone at the club will be pleased with the overall make-up of the season to date.
The biggest losers from Leeds’ defeat to Arsenal
Right across the pitch, Leeds were strong. The midfield, in particular, deserves fine praise.
In Ethan Ampadu, Ao Tanaka and Anton Stach, you have a fine balance. Ampadu sweeps things up in front of defence, Tanaka provides the hustle and bustle, while Stach provides the attacking threat and lung-busting energy.
During that game, no two players covered more distance than Ampadu and Stach. Only one outfield player on the Leeds team – Jayden Bogle – made more ball recoveries than Tanaka’s tally of four.
Against a £105m player in Declan Rice, they were the dominant trio in the game. Bruno Guimaraes did, of course, change that game but up to that point Ampadu, Tanaka and Stach were running the show.
As a result, that is not good news for two players at Leeds who, in truth, will be lucky to start another Premier League game for the club.
The first is Sean Longstaff. Signed for £12m in the summer of 2025, he has never really grasped his opportunity at Elland Road. Last season, the 28-year-old Geordie started just ten times and judging by how this campaign has played out, he’s in for another year of pain when it comes to match action.
He is yet to start a game this term and has only played ten minutes in the league. Farke doesn’t trust him and with this Leeds team just getting better and better, be surprised if you see Longstaff’s name on the teamsheet before the winter transfer window.
The other name is Ilia Gruev. The £5m Bulgarian has been missing due to a meniscus injury since late April. Like Longstaff, he did not play much in 2025/26, starting only 15 top-flight fixtures.
Of course, due to injury, Gruev hasn’t been seen at all this season and, in all honesty, it would be a surprise if we saw much of him going forward.
After recovering from a knee injury during the successful promotion campaign, the midfielder was a key component of Farke’s side. He started all six of the final games of the season. Since then, however, Leeds have gone to the next level and Gruev has been left behind.
The performance of Tanaka, Stach and Ampadu was so exceptional against the champions a few days ago that it would be madness to split it up. Longstaff and Gruev look finished as a result.
