West Brom vs Leeds Prediction: Little to separate Baggies and Whites

Leeds United travel to The Hawthorns to face West Brom, with both sides occupying play-off positions and looking to create a gap with the chasing pack.

The Baggies can go six points clear of sixth placed Sunderland with victory, whilst The Whites, who already have a six point buffer over their opponents, can potentially cut the gap between the top two to five points.

Team News

Albion boss Carlos Corberan has almost a full squad to choose from for Friday night’s game, with Matt Phillips and Josh Maja the only long-term absentees with respective hamstring and ankle injuries.

Striker Daryl Dike sustained an injury to his Achilles against Stoke earlier this month and could be in consideration for the matchday squad after making his return to fitness.

For Leeds, manager Daniel Farke will be without goalkeeper Illan Meslier after his straight red card against Preston on Tuesday, with Karl Darlow the likely replacement in goal.

Jamie Shackleton remains absent through injury and should return next month, while Stuart Dallas, who has been out since April 2022 with a broken leg, should also return in January.

Match Odds

Leeds are the favourites, with odds at 23/20, while West Brom to win are at 21/10. The match to end in a draw is at 21/10 also, whilst it is 4/1 for there to be over 2.5 goals.

Draw and Both Teams to Score @ 16/5

Both sides are in identical form (W2, D1, L2) over their last five games and also drew the reverse fixture at Elland Road 1-1 back in August.

The result could therefore come down to individual brilliance, with West Brom’s best player this season arguably being goalkeeper Alex Palmer, who leads the league in clean sheets.

Leeds are likely to create the more chances of the two, with 12 members of the first team squad averaging more than one shot per 90 minutes.

It will be a battle between the Championship’s best defence and one of the league's most potent attacks, with neither likely to break.

Brandon Thomas-Asante to Score Anytime @ 12/5 

The Baggies have scored 35 goals in the division this season, ranking eighth in this metric, but have only scored five in their last five games.

Three of these were converted by Brandon Thomas-Asante, who finds himself in a purple patch of form and leading the way for West Brom with seven goals, matching his tally from last season.

The 24-year-old scored in the 1-1 draw at Elland Road in August and was last on the scoresheet in a home defeat back in September 2022.

If The Baggies are going to come away with a result, the form of Thomas-Asante could be pivotal in achieving this and another goal to break his own Championship scoring record could be on the cards.

Check out the rest of our Football Betting Tips here.