U21s Preview: Leeds United vs Sporting CP | OneFootball

Leeds United kick off their Premier League International Cup campaign on Thursday evening with an exciting clash against Portuguese side Sporting CP.

The test against the Lisbon opposition marks the first fixture for Scott Gardner’s side in Group D, where they will also face Academy sides from Athletic Club, Borussia Dortmund and Anderlecht at the LNER Community Stadium.

The Whites had previously featured in the competition during the 2023/24 season where they came up against PSV Eindhoven, Hetha Berlin, Sparta Prague and Nice.

Leeds go into the encounter keen to bounce back from a cruel defeat last time out. Having fought back impressively from two goals down at Crystal Palace in the Premier League 2, the hosts snatched all three points in the dying moments in the capital.

Prior to that, United were at their scintillating best as they beat Scunthorpe United 3-1 in the National League Cup, courtesy of a Harry Gray hat-trick.

Sporting’s reserve side compete in the second tier of Portuguese football and have started then new campaign off in fine fashion, winning four of their opening five matches.

After beating Paços de Ferreira convincingly 3-0, João Gião's side followed that result up with an impressive late comeback to defeat Portimonense 2-1 away from home last time out.

The squad plays host to a number of emerging Portuguese talent who represent their country at youth level, including striker Rodrigo Ribeiro who briefly enjoyed a loan spell in English football with Nottingham Forest.

Action from the LNER Community Stadium gets underway at 7pm.

Supporter information:

Adult tickets are priced at £6, with concessions and under-16s priced at £3. Parking can also be purchased with your ticket.

More information about the LNER Community Stadium, including directions and matchday facilities, can be found HERE.

How to follow:

Subscribers to LUTV can watch the full match live, HERE. Highlights and post-match reaction will also be available after the full-time whistle.

Fans can stay right here on leedsunited.com to follow live blog updates throughout the 90 minutes, with a full match report and highlights available after the game has finished.