Facing one final dress rehearsal ahead of their second attempt at Championship promotion, Leeds United will welcome Spanish heavyweights Valencia to Elland Road for a pre-season friendly on Saturday afternoon.
The Whites are back on home soil following a training camp in Germany last month, whilst Los Ches are still searching for their maiden victory this summer.
Match preview
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Following a 19th-placed finish and subsequent relegation from the Premier League during the 2022-23 term, Leeds were desperate to make it just a single-year stint in the Championship, but a relentless pace at the top of the division and playoff heartbreak resulted in the Yorkshire side falling short of their ambitions.
Despite collecting an eye-watering total of 90 points from their 46 league contests, the Whites ended up third in the standings behind Leicester City and surprise package Ipswich Town, with Daniel Farke's side eventually missing out on promotion after losing to Southampton in the playoff final at Wembley Stadium.
Committing his short-term future to Leeds last summer following a raft of transfer speculation, Crysencio Summerville blew in the Championship away during the 2023-24 season, with the 22-year-old Dutchman scoring 19 goals and providing nine assists in 43 second-tier matches.
With the winger reportedly edging closer to a West Ham United switch, the Whites could be more reliant on the goalscoring instincts of Joel Piroe, who enjoyed a productive debut season at Elland Road after transferring from fellow second-tier outfit Swansea City 12 months ago.
Farke's troops have played three matches in pre-season so far, kicking off their schedule with a comfortable 3-0 win over Harrogate Town before enjoying an excellent pair of results in Germany, beating Hannover 4-1 prior to recording a two-goal success over Schalke 04 last weekend.
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Taking charge of Valencia in February 2023, former player Ruben Baraja has been tasked with taking his side back towards the upper echelons of the Spanish game, with the 49-year-old a key part of the club's title-winning squads of 2001-02 and 2003-04 - Los Ches' only La Liga crowns in the last 50 years.
After avoiding an unthinkable relegation by just two points during a wretched 2022-23 season, Valencia returned to the top half of the standings last term, occupying ninth position by the end of play, sitting eight points behind seventh-placed Real Betis, who clinched the final European spot.
Despite a tricky few years, Los Ches still possess a number of top talents within their ranks, including goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, who starred for major tournament debutants Georgia at this summer's Euro 2024 in Germany, where the Crusaders exceeded all expectations to reach the knockout stages.
Another star for Leeds supporter to look out for on Saturday afternoon is midfielder Javi Guerra, whose impressive displays for Valencia over the past two years mean that he is now being courted by a number of top clubs, including Spanish powerhouses Barcelona.
On the contrary to this weekend's hosts at Elland Road, Los Ches have struggled to build momentum during the opening part of their summer schedule, failing to win any of their four friendly bouts with Castellon, Deportivo Alaves, PSV Eindhoven and La Liga 2 outfit Levante.
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Team News
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After an impressive loan stint at Elland Road last season, Joe Rodon has moved permanently to Leeds from Tottenham Hotspur for £10m, and the Wales international will be a stalwart at centre-back this term.
The Whites have a number of new signings who could make their home debuts this weekend, including Bournemouth loanee Joe Rothwell, who made a habit of providing goalscoring contributions off the bench for Southampton during 2023-24.
With Archie Gray moving in the opposite direction to Rodon and linking up with Spurs, Jayden Bogle is set to become the first choice at right-back for Leeds.
Looking to reinvigorate his career following a stuttering 2023-24 season, Sevilla loanee Rafa Mir could start up front for Valencia at Elland Road.
Los Ches have added another international goalkeeper to their ranks this summer, with North Macedonian Stole Dimitrievski joining from Rayo Vallecano.
Leeds United possible starting lineup:
Meslier; Bogle, Rodon, Ampadu, Firpo; Gruev, Aaronson; Joseph, Rutter, Gnonto; Piroe
Valencia possible starting lineup:
Dimitrievski; Foulquier, Tarrega, Ozakacar, Vazquez; Canos, Almeida, Pepelu, Tejon; Duro, Mir
We say: Leeds United 2-1 Valencia
Unbeaten in pre-season so far, Leeds should be full of confidence and desperate to impress their Elland Road faithful before the start of competitive action next weekend.
Valencia are behind the Whites in their summer schedule and have struggled so far, meaning that we cannot envisage the Spaniards earning a result in Yorkshire.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Carter White
