Manchester United v Liverpool - Premier League
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 03: Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford on May 03, 2026 in Manchester, England. (Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)
Leeds United’s 4-1 win over Newcastle took our points tally to eight after just four games.
Against Newcastle, the Whites were incredible, and it turned out to be another memorable night under the lights at Elland Road as we put yet another team to the sword.
Jamie Carragher was full of praise for Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s performance during the game. Our striker was incredibly unfortunate not to end the evening with two goals. Instead, it looks like he’ll have to settle for one goal and one assist as his header skimmed Jayden Bogle before going in.
However, prior to kick-off, Carragher made an interesting admission regarding Leeds when analysing them on Monday Night Football.
Jamie Carragher believes Leeds have an outside chance of qualifying for Europe
Prior to kick-off, a graphic was shown on Sky Sports of the Premier League table since December 2025, with Leeds sitting 6th. After our win against Newcastle, we have moved up to fifth in that table.
That incredible run of form has led Carragher to admit that United do in fact have an outside shout of qualifying for Europe this season.
“Yes, I didn’t (think they could qualify for Europe) at the start of the season. I think Brentford was my outside chance to make European football, but I have absolutely loved Leeds since they have come back into the Premier League.
“There was always talk around the manager, maybe they weren’t going to keep him even though he brought them up from the Championship, and he stayed. He’s had that criticism; he’s had other jobs in the Premier League that haven’t gone particularly well for him, but what he’s done here- the physicality in that team now.
“Leeds feel like a Premier League team even when Leeds are in the Championship; you feel like they’re in the wrong division. It just feels like they’re a Premier League team; it’s great they’ve stayed up.”
Jamie Carragher outlines what Leeds United’s goal should be
After avoiding the drop upon our return to the top-flight, Carragher believes that we should look to follow in the footsteps of Newcastle and Aston Villa.
Both sides came up from the Championship themselves in the not-too-distant past and have won silverware and qualified for Europe on multiple occasions since.
“You think of the strides Newcastle have made in the last three or four seasons, where they came from. Now and again, they’d go down to the Championship; they came back and invested.
“When you’re talking about what could be happening with the stadium (Elland Road), they should be looking at teams like Aston Villa and Newcastle, thinking that’s our goal. Can we eventually emulate what they’ve done and get European football at our club, maybe get a trophy?
“What Farke and the boys have done since they have been back has been fantastic.”
Europe seems like a real possibility
Whilst I think we will come up short when it comes to qualifying for Europe this season, I still think we will finish a lot closer to the European positions than the bottom three.
This in itself would be an incredible achievement for a side in just their second season back in the division.
The fact that notable pundits like Carragher are even acknowledging us qualifying for Europe this season is a possibility is a testament to the exceptional work the 49ers and Daniel Farke have done at Elland Road.
Not every game can be as good as that Newcastle one was last night. But they’ve got us dreaming about Europe again, and if you give Leeds United supporters belief, very special things can happen at Elland Road.