Leeds United face an uphill battle but Elland Road has shown improbable does not mean impossible
Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter
06:00, 28 Feb 2026
Daniel Farke has defeated Pep Guardiola once before in his career
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Daniel Farke has defeated Pep Guardiola once before in his career(Image: James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)
Leeds United will have to “climb Mount Everest” to defeat Manchester City tonight, according to Daniel Farke - but at Elland Road, anything is possible.
In the six evening games hosted at home this season, Leeds have failed to win just once and December’s 3-3 draw with Liverpool saw Ao Tanaka net a 96th-minute equaliser to bring the roof off.
Home is indeed where the heart is for the Whites, who have lost just once at Elland Road since November, and that was to title favourites Arsenal. It is no surprise to see Leeds sitting 12th in the Premier League home-form table.
“We are a very passionate club and my players are also driven by their [fans] emotions and by their spirit,” says Farke. “You can always feel that when the floodlights are on everyone is in a good mood.”
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Leeds have at least three Premier League night matches to play at home, which could grow depending on TV scheduling. This weekend’s clash against Man City is the first of these floodlit fixtures, and is perhaps their toughest test of them all.
Farke, who has a close relationship with “best manager in the world” Pep Guardiola, knows the size of the task ahead.
He has faced his friend four times, describing the first encounter - a 3-2 win for his Norwich City side back in 2019 - as climbing the world’s tallest mountain.
“It's still Mount Everest to climb,” Farke reiterates. “You don't do this easily each day, so it has to be an extraordinary day [for Leeds].
“But you start playing football in order to sometimes reach unrealistic goals and you want to have extraordinary days - this is what we're trying to do on the weekend.”
The Leeds squad, which sits six points above the relegation zone, has stressed that they always had belief they could avoid the drop, yet November’s reverse fixture was undoubtedly a sliding-doors moment regarding confidence.
Having sat two goals down at half-time, Farke changed to a back three and by 68 minutes Leeds had pulled back level. Phil Foden’s 91st-minute winner sank visiting hearts but the club came out of the match with renewed optimism.
Lukas Nmecha of Leeds United celebrates scoring a goal to make it 2-2
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Lukas Nmecha of Leeds United celebrates scoring a goal to make it 2-2(Image: Matt West/Shutterstock)
Farke, under pressure before the match, left the Etihad Stadium having registered six defeats in seven games but since that trip Leeds have lost just twice in 16 fixtures.
As a result, Leeds 1992 title-winner Tony Dorigo tells Leeds Live: “I don’t think they believe that they won’t get something from it - so they’re going to give it a right good go.
“This is not one to say it’s a ‘free hit’. This is a game to say, you know what, let’s go and prove that we’re not a bad side after all.”
Erling Haaland travels back to birthplace Leeds for the first time in more than three years, having scored twice on his first visit in December 2022 but in neither of his two home fixtures against the Whites since.
Farke says "outstanding" Haaland is the “complete” striker who has only excelled under Guardiola. “Pep makes each and every player better, there is no doubt about this,” he adds.
“Even the best players in the world who have played under him always had their best times and flourished most under his regime.” Farke says the Norwegian has now evolved into the “best striker in the world”.
He meanwhile pointed out that Haaland is far from the only threat Guardiola possesses in his armoury, analogising “some have died” while trying to take on Everest.
“We are, of course, the underdog, but we've shown several times that in this role we can deliver convincing performances,” Farke added.
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Leeds have claimed results against Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United at home. Now they set their sights on Manchester City, the season’s final top-six club to come to Elland Road.