Leeds United v Brentford Betting Tips

West Yorkshire side Leeds welcome West London club Brentford to Elland Road on Saturday afternoon as both look to secure a positive result ahead of the busy festive period.

Since dropping down from England’s top tier in 2004, seldom have Leeds fans had anything to get really excited about; however, in recent times, there is genuine optimism surrounding Elland Road and it’s felt, by more than just followers of the club, that The Whites are in with a real shout of returning to the Premier League in the not so distant future.

Ahead of this fixture against 13th place Brentford, Leeds are presented with a good opportunity to continue their fine form and move deeper into the coveted play-off places. The two bets worth being on are ‘Leeds to Win’ and ‘Leeds to Score Over 1.5 Goals’.

Home turf is where Leeds have really thrived this season. Since the arrival of Gary Monk, the hosts have made Elland Road a bit of a fortress, suffering defeat on their own patch on only three occasions (all three of which came against teams currently comfortably inside the top half). Of their other matches in front of a home crowd, they’ve won six, winning four of their last five, including an impressive victory over 3rd place Reading last time out.

Winning games is one thing, but scoring goals is another, although Leeds haven’t had too much problem when it comes to finding the net at home this season. Monk’s side have scored 14 goals at Elland Road, failing to score just twice (against Newcastle and Huddersfield – both of whom are inside the top-four). Having scored at least twice in four of their last five home fixtures, Leeds have upped their efficiency in front of goal in recent weeksn and could easily continue to do so against a Brentford side who haven’t exactly fared well on their travels.

The visitors have lost six times on the road this season, generally struggling when facing teams who’re significantly higher than them in the table (conceded eight in losses against Newcastle and Norwich). The fact that The Bees have conceded 18 goals on the road won’t please manager Dean Smith, although, with the form Leeds are in right now, there might be nothing the visiting boss can do to prevent his side conceding further goals here.

One of Leeds’ main weapons during this campaign has been the man wearing the no. 9 shirt. With New Zealand international Chris Wood in their ranks, Leeds have what almost every team craves – an out-and-out goal-scorer. Having scored 11 goals so far, the big centre-forward is proving his worth more than ever before. Maintaining form as a striker is often difficult, but the fact that Wood has scored his 11 goals in 11 different Championship matches suggests he doesn’t have too much problem with this. With a number of other attacking talents in his ranks, Gary Monk knows his side can be versatile in terms of their attacking avenues, but having a forward who continually finds the net is a huge bonus.

Right now there’s plenty to like about this Leeds teams. They’re solid at the back (three clean sheets in their last five at home), good going forward, possess a real goal-getter and should be brimming with confidence ahead of this match. Against a Brentford side who’re suffered numerous heavy defeats on the road this season, the hosts’ upward curve is fancied to go on.

See Saturday’s League One tips here.