Leeds United welcome Tottenham Hotspur to Elland Road in a game that neither team can really afford to lose. Leeds are sleepwalking towards potential relegation from the Premier League and Antonio Conte might be getting the sack from Spurs.
Will it be Marcelo Bielsa or Antonio Conte who leaves Saturday as the happier man? Don’t miss our Leeds United vs. Tottenham Hotspur tips and predictions.
Leeds United vs Tottenham match odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
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Leeds United vs Tottenham betting tips
Predictions made on 2/24/2022 at 10:45 a.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.
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Leeds United vs Tottenham game info
• Location: Elland Road, Leeds, England
• Date: Saturday, February 26, 2022
• Time: 7:30 a.m. ET
• TV: Peacock Premium, fubo TV, Sling Blue, Hulu + Live TV
Leeds United vs Tottenham betting preview
Weather
This is a lunchtime kickoff in Leeds and temperatures are expected to be around 50 degrees. There shouldn’t be any rain at Elland Road in conditions that might, at worst, be slightly cloudy.
Injuries
Leeds United: Robin Koch CB (Out), Kalvin Phillips DM (Out), Patrick Bamford CF (Out), Liam Cooper CB (Out), Leo Hjelde LB (Out).
Tottenham: Oliver Skipp CM (Questionable), Japhet Tanganga CB (Questionable), Rodrigo Bentancur MF (Questionable).
Leeds United vs Tottenham predictions
Our predictions are compiled from the analysis of the spread and total and are indications of where we are leaning for this game.
Our best bet is the play that we like the most for this game, which we would actually put some of our bankroll behind.
Side analysis
Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur meet on Saturday in the Premier League’s lunchtime slot, the opening game of the day. Despite Spurs being 16 points clear of Leeds, they’re both teams that feel somewhat similar. They’re both in crisis mode and racking up defeats, but both managers still have the support of their fanbase, which is often the most crucial thing to prevent a potential sacking.
It’s been a long season for Leeds, who’ve been decimated by injuries and whose star player Raphinha is cutting the figure of a man who no longer wishes to play there. Despite these problems, which have Leeds looking like genuine relegation candidates, the vast majority of the supporters still sing for Argentine Marcelo Bielsa…at least for now.
There’s a valid argument that Bielsa has been hamstrung by injuries. But with Patrick Bamford and Kalvin Phillips looking likely to return soon — albeit not in time for this game — the performances need to come or Bielsa will start losing fan support. Bielsa’s issue, as it has been throughout his career, is his single-mindedness. He’s a genius and has influenced how the game has developed, but his insistence on sticking to a formation and style of play, even when missing large chunks of his starting eleven, is either arrogance or stupidity.
His counterpart at Spurs, Antonio Conte, hasn’t lost the fans, either. It seems like the only person in North London questioning him is Conte himself, with worrying quotes after Wednesday’s 1-0 loss to Burnley.
”For me the situation is unacceptable. To lose four of five (games) for Tottenham has to be a disaster. I came in to try to improve the situation. Maybe in this moment I am not so good to improve the situation. I am too honest to close my eyes and continue in this way. For sure we are to speak and have a conversation with the club to try and find the best solution to help the team not have this type of situation.”
Conte is hugely passionate — and I’m inclined to believe this was said in the heat of the moment — but it does raise questions. Conte has undoubtedly shown glimmers of his brilliance with this Spurs team. Their 3-2 win over Man City just last Sunday was an incredible performance, both by the players and in particular Harry Kane, but also by the manager who came up with answers to everything Pep Guardiola attempted to do.
On Saturday, we’ll see Leeds try to out-work Spurs as they always do, with more running and more effort, but if Conte sets up his team correctly, they’ll cause Leeds huge issues on the counter. The blueprint to beating this Leeds team is via speed down the flanks and on either side of Kane it’ll be Son Heung-min and either Lucas Moura or Dejan Kulusevski to supply that.
We’ll see both teams improve as the next weeks and months pass, but it’s hard to look beyond Spurs on Saturday. They may be struggling at the moment but this is a team that has the perfect tools to be able to hurt Leeds. And in Conte, they have a manager who will set the team up perfectly to do it, even if he himself doubts it. Even at -110 Spurs look like the smart play here.
Prediction: Tottenham Hotspur (-110)
Over/Under analysis
Leeds have been disastrous defensively of late. In their past four games, they’ve conceded 16 goals and even if you take out Liverpool, who hit them for six on Wednesday, they’ve still allowed a terrible team like Everton to score three times.
There have been more than 2.5 goals scored in 58.3% of Leeds' home games this season but it’s crucially happened in four of their past five, with only relegation candidates Newcastle failing to indulge in a goalfest.
Spurs have had Over 2.5 goals in 56.5% of games this season, but this has dropped to 45.5% when on the road. That wouldn’t ordinarily have me jumping to back the Over, but they’ve scored three away at Man City and Leicester in recent weeks and are playing a Leeds team that looks tired and badly coached. Back Over 2.5 here, it’s not a fun bet but it's the best bet here.
Prediction: Over 2.5 goals (-163)
Best bet
Kane might be the talisman for Spurs but it’s his striker partner Son who we’ll be backing to score on Saturday. The South Korean is a fantastic player and looks set to take advantage of the weaknesses in the Leeds backline.
Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen a regular pattern of wide forwards finding the back of the net against Leeds, with Phillipe Coutinho, Anthony Elanga, Sadio Mane (twice), and Mohamed Salah (twice) all able to score. Son might not have Lucas Moura’s speed but he’s a better, more technical player and still has excellent pace. He’s the sort of player who should thrive in this game and has been in great form this season, scoring nine Premier League goals in 21 games while averaging 2.3 shots. Back him at +150 to score or — if you’re feeling more daring — the +550 on him scoring first is also worth a little sprinkle.
Pick: Son Heung-min to score (+150)
