The Lowdown: Marcelo Bielsa's Swashbuckling Leeds
Marcelo Bielsa's men have made an encouraging start to their first top-flight campaign in 16 years, winning three of their opening six matches in the Premier League.
Ahead of Monday's encounter in Yorkshire, a clash of two teams currently sitting in the upper reaches of the table, LCFC.com takes a closer look at the three-time champions of England...
The manager
Experienced Argentinian manager Marcelo Bielsa has transformed Leeds United from a club on the periphery of promotion contention in the Championship to early Premier League high-fliers.
Born in Rosario in 1955, Bielsa's playing career included spells with Newell's Old Boys, Instituto and Argentino, although it was in the dugout where he would truly make his name.
Initially starting out as a youth team coach for Newell's Old Boys, the former defender took charge of the senior team in 1990, winning the 1991 Apertura and 1992 Clausura championships.
After a spell in Mexico, meanwhile, he returned to his homeland to lift another league title – the 1998 Clausura – while coaching Vélez Sarsfield before moving, albeit briefly, to European football.
Perfecting a high-intensity 3-3-1-3 formation, a brief tenure at Espanyol was followed by six years as Argentina manager - winning the 2004 Olympics Gold medal and finishing as Copa América runners-up.
Bielsa then enjoyed a sabbatical from the game, until taking over Chile's national team, where he masterminded the country's first-ever victory over Argentina before reaching the round of 16 at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Despite low expectations at Athletic Bilbao, Bielsa nonetheless then reached both the Copa del Rey and UEFA Europa League finals between 2011 and 2013 at the Spanish club, before spells at Marseille, Lazio and Lille.
Throughout his career, the Argentine has managed the likes of Mauricio Pochettino and Diego Simeone who, like onlooker Pep Guardiola, credit his philosophy as a central pillar of their own managerial ideals.
The shock announcement by Leeds of Bielsa as their new manager in the summer of 2018 immediately made the football world take notice, although it would take time for the Whites to earn promotion.
After play-off semi-final heartbreak against Derby County at the end of the 2018/19 season, Bielsa stayed and was instrumental in Leeds ending last term as Championship champions.
The Yorkshire club are built in Bielsa's own image, with an incredibly organised, dedicated, but attacking, stratagem in place which is now alarming even the Premier League's sternest of defences.
The team
Leeds United's return to the Premier League led to a substantial, but methodical, summer of recruitment at Elland Road, with 13 signings being confirmed by the Yorkshire outfit.
The capture of Rodrigo from Valencia set Leeds back a reported £26M in late August, while Raphinha's move, from Rennes, concluded a busy summer window for the northern giants.
Other faces to join the club included defender Robin Koch (from SC Freiburg), goalkeeper Illan Meslier (from Lorient) and Jack Harrison, who extended a loan move from Manchester City.
Regular watchers of Leeds, though, will not have been surprised to see many of their regulars over previous seasons also excelling at a higher level this time around.
A hat-trick for striker Patrick Bamford against Aston Villa last week, for example, saw the Englishman increase his early 2020/21 goals tally to six strikes in as many appearances.
Elsewhere, Mateusz Klich, Ezgjan Alioski and Hélder Costa, who joined permanently from Wolverhampton Wanderers following a loan spell last term, have all impressed in the Premier League.
After finishing 10 points clear of West Bromwich Albion last term, never dipping below fifth in the Championship, Leeds currently sit sixth in the top-flight standings at the time of writing.
Form guide
Leeds' return to the top division started with a daunting trip to face champions Liverpool at Anfield, but Marcelo Bielsa's side delivered a swashbuckling performance on Merseyside.
Despite eventually succumbing to a 4-3 defeat, onlookers acknowledged the quality of their attacking play and the Whites followed it up with successive victories over Fulham and Sheffield United.
Rodrigo's first goal for the club, on the other hand, helped Leeds secure an admirable 1-1 home draw with Pep Guardiola's Manchester City - and the hosts could, maybe should, have picked up all three points.
A narrow home loss to Wolverhampton Wanderers dented their unbeaten return to the Premier League this month, but Leeds quickly got back on track in some style.
A 3-0 success at Aston Villa - courtesy of Patrick Bamford's hat-trick - enabled United to return to winning ways, elevating the club back up to sixth in the table.
Previous encounters
While City's last away visit to Elland Road in the Premier League was back in April 2004, a dramatic, last-minute 3-2 defeat for the Foxes, the two sides have met regularly in the lower leagues.
Leeds' shocking tumble down the English football pyramid was, in part, matched by Leicester's in the early 21st century, and the Blue Army still fondly remember a 1-0 League 1 success in 2009 to this day.
While the Foxes were able to limit their stay in the third tier to just one season, United eventually returned to the Championship after three seasons away, as runners-up, in 2010.
City are unbeaten in their previous four encounters with Leeds, mostly recently sealing a 3-1 League Cup victory, courtesy of goals from Kelechi Iheanacho, Islam Slimani and Riyad Mahrez, in 2017.
However, the Elland Road club hold a slender advantage over Leicester in the all-time head-to-head record, winning 47 of 127 clashes, compared to City's 43 successes.
Trophy cabinet
Leeds United's status as one of the biggest clubs in the country is proven by the three league championships sitting in their trophy cabinet.
Thanks to the goals of Mick Jones, the club's first top-tier title success came in 1969 when they pipped Liverpool to the championship by a margin of eight points.
Don Revie oversaw a period of regular title challenges at Elland Road over the following campaigns, but it would take the Whites another five seasons to lift the top prize once more.
Following three successive second-placed finishes and one third-placed standing, Leeds once again beat Liverpool to the title in 1974, before Revie's departure to manage England.
Triumphs in the FA Cup, in 1972, and League Cup, in 1968, also came Leeds' way during a halcyon period for the club's fans, but they would struggle to challenge again for almost 20 years.
After slipping into the Second Division - where they would spend eight consecutive seasons - Howard Wilkinson's men marked their second season back in the First Division with another title, in 1992.
European honours, though, have evaded them, reaching the European Cup final in 1975 and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup showpiece in 1973. They also reached the UEFA Champions League semi-finals in 2001.
The stadium
Elland Road remains one of English football's grand old venues. While other clubs have moved to more modern environments, Leeds have remained at their current home since their inception in 1919.
With a current capacity of 37,792, Elland Road is the 11th biggest in the Premier League, but what it lacks in size, it makes up for in atmosphere, although coronavirus restrictions have denied their fans a chance to attend this term.
Three of the stands at Elland Road mark club legends with the north, south and west stands being named in honour of Don Revie, Norman Hunter and John Charles respectively.
Elland Road is further decorated by statues of Billy Bremner and Revie, which often become points of celebration for the Leeds supporters, as it did earlier this year after promotion was secured.
Since becoming an all-seater venue, the record attendance was a Premier League match against Newcastle United in 2001, attracting a crowd of 40,287, but the venue also held 57,892 against Sunderland in 1967.
Upcoming fixtures
After entertaining Leicester City on Monday, the Whites travel to Selhurst Park to tackle Crystal Palace on the following Saturday (3pm kick-off).
Then, Arsenal are the visitors to Elland Road on 22 November (4:30pm kick-off), before a trip to Merseyside to face Everton on 28 November (5:30pm kick-off).
A hectic December for Leeds sees them scheduled to face Chelsea (A), West Ham United (H), Newcastle United (H), Manchester United (A), Burnley (H) and West Bromwich Albion (A).
All times GMT.