Leeds United's Injury Concerns Ahead of Sunderland Trip

Leeds United’s preparations for Sunday’s visit to Sunderland have been thrown into doubt, with Daniel Farke admitting his frontline has been left battered by the bruising draw with Manchester United.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Anton Stach and Noah Okafor are all serious doubts for the journey to Wearside, leaving Farke juggling scenarios and contingencies rather than rehearsed combinations.

At Thorp Arch, the Leeds manager cut straight to the point. The players who carried the attacking load in the last game are, for now, on the brink of missing the next one.

Calvert-Lewin, who has quickly become a central pillar of Leeds’ attack, is nursing a heavy foot bruise after a late foul against United. Since that challenge, he has struggled, and the issue has kept him out of full training.

The outlook is not entirely bleak. The injury is painful rather than structural, and Farke knows that gives him a sliver of hope. With 48 hours still to play with, Leeds will test how much pain the striker can tolerate. If he can grit his teeth, he plays. If not, a key reference point in their attack disappears.

Stach is in a similar position. Another foot problem, another painful question mark. He, too, has missed significant training time this week, and the staff are again left waiting rather than planning with certainty.

Okafor’s situation is more delicate. Adductor trouble is different territory. Leeds will not gamble with his minutes in the same way, aware that one wrong decision could turn a short-term issue into a long-term absence. Were the game today, Farke admitted, none of the three would be available.

That reality has shaped the week. Sessions without them, tactical work built around possible rather than probable line-ups, and a manager resigned to making late, perhaps very late, decisions.

The doubts do not end there. Joe Rodon remains another major concern, trimming Leeds’ options further in key areas of the pitch. It leaves the squad stretched at precisely the point in the season when rhythm and continuity usually matter most.

There is, though, one shaft of light. Daniel James has come through his first full training week and is firmly back in contention. His return injects pace and directness into a side that may need both if their usual attacking spearheads are forced to watch from the sidelines.

Leeds will travel north not knowing exactly who will lead their charge. Sunderland, and the rest of the division, will be watching closely to see who steps out of the tunnel – and who never makes it onto the team sheet.