Leeds United vs Norwich City Prediction: Hosts are too strong at home

Leeds United have been a strong force in the Championship this season and are currently second in the table after Sheffield United came from behind to beat Swansea City on Tuesday. Leeds have tried to pull away in the promotion race but the Blades, Burnley and Sunderland have been pushing them all the way so far. The Whites are in action at Elland Road on Wednesday (19:45, Sky Sports+) as they entertain Norwich City.

The hosts recorded an emphatic 3-0 win here over Yorkshire rivals Sheffield Wednesday on Sunday, while the Canaries were beaten 2-0 by Sheffield United in their last appearance. Below you will find my Leeds United vs Norwich City prediction, alongside the latest match odds and team news.

Leeds United vs Norwich City Odds

Leeds have won 11 of their 14 Championship appearances on home soil this season, and they are 4/11 to come out on top on Wednesday night. Nine of those victories have seen the Whites keep a clean sheet, so there is better value to be had in backing them to win to nil at 23/20, which has an implied probability of 46.5%.

Norwich are 13/2 to come away with the three points but they have lost five of their last eight away contests in the second tier. Leeds have drawn two of their last three matches in the league, so the draw could be a tempting option at 100/30 (23.1%).

Both teams to score has struck in four of the last six Championship contests between the two clubs, and is on offer at 1/1 this time around.

Leeds striker Joel Piroe has hit 10 goals in the league so far and is currently the fourth-highest marksman in the division. He is priced at 7/2 to strike first on Wednesday.

Football Odds

Team News

Key defender Pascal Struijk has been ruled out for several weeks with a hamstring injury, which has come as a huge blow for Leeds. The centre-back's absence last time out saw Ethan Ampadu return to the back line to partner Joe Rodon, so this partnership is expected to continue against Norwich.

Another home star struggling with a hamstring problem is forward Patrick Bamford, who has been plagued by physical ailments in the past few years. He's been out of action since New Year's Day. Top scorer Piroe has been the main option up top this campaign, but Daniel Farke also has an alternative in Mateo Joseph, who has started 11 times in the league.

Dan James, Brenden Aaronson and Manor Solomon operated in support of Piroe at the weekend, with Solomon getting on the scoresheet. Largie Ramazani came on from the bench to help wrap up the victory with a goal of his own, so he will be pushing for a start against the Canaries.

Wilfried Gnonto is another option to play out wide if Daniel Farke decides to shake up his team selection. Defender Junior Firpo returned to the squad at the weekend and he will be looking to reclaim the left-back position, but he faces a challenge given how well Sam Byram has been performing.

Joe Rothwell and Ao Tanaka have formed an impressive partnership in the engine room, but Ilia Gruev will be eager to return to the midfield.

Norwich are still missing the Championship's leading marksman Borja Sainz due to suspension but they have recently welcomed back forward Josh Sargent, who will be itching to get back up to speed in the second tier.

The visitors have no fresh injury concerns heading to Elland Road, but Liam Gibbs (hamstring), Gabe Forsyth (knee) and Jacob Lungi Sorensen (groin) remain on the sidelines.

Lewis Dobbin joined the club this month on loan from Aston Villa to provide another attacking dynamic for Johannes Hoff Thorup's team. The Canaries have further dipped into the transfer market to acquire another attacking player in Matej Jurasek from Slavia Prague, but due to post-Brexit regulations, the winger is unable to be registered until February 3.

Leeds to win to nil @ 23/20

Leeds are in an excellent position at this stage of the season, even if they haven't quite broken free of the chasing pack yet. Their home form has been key to their campaign and they have lost just once at Elland Road, a 1-0 defeat to Burnley back in September.

Since then, they have won 10 of their 11 fixtures here, eight of which have seen them record a clean sheet in the process. They have been performing excellently on home soil and they will have been given an extra lift from their Yorkshire derby win over Wednesday last time out, which sets them up nicely for another home clash against a Norwich side who tend to struggle on the road.

The Canaries have lost five of their previous eight away trips in the second tier, and they have failed to score in three of them. They found life tough against Sheffield United at the weekend, who are one place below Leeds in the standings, so this is going to be another testing 90 minutes for Thorup's men.

The home side are a strong force at Elland Road and Norwich head here without their biggest source of goals, so I think Leeds are worth backing to win to nil again.

Joel Piroe anytime goalscorer @ 23/20

Piroe's goals have been important this season and he will be itching for more as last year's total of 14 fell short of expectations in relation to his figures for his former club Swansea City, where he netted 41 goals across two league campaigns.

With 10 goals so far and 19 games left to play, he's in a strong position to better last season's total, and I do think he will take one step closer on Wednesday against Norwich.

The Dutchman has three goals in his last five appearances in the Championship, so he heads here in decent form. He will also be eager to strike against the Canaries as they are one of four teams he has faced in the second tier, whom he is yet to score against - the others being Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn Rovers.

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