Leeds United earned a 4-1 home win over Crystal Palace that moved Daniel Farke’s side six points clear of the Premier League relegation places, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin scoring twice in a game shaped
by set-pieces and Palace rotation.
Calvert-Lewin’s brace at Elland Road also extended a personal hot streak, as the forward became the first Leeds player since Mark Viduka in August 2003 to score in five straight Premier League appearances, strengthening Leeds United’s position in the Premier League battle near the bottom.
Crystal Palace changed the entire starting XI from the UEFA Conference League match against KuPS, played 48 hours earlier, and that decision showed as Leeds United punished defensive lapses in this Premier League meeting, especially from two long Ethan Ampadu throws late in the first half that both led to goals for Calvert-Lewin.
The breakthrough arrived on 38 minutes when an Ampadu throw reached Chris Richards, whose touch diverted the ball across goal, leaving Calvert-Lewin free to finish from close range past Dean Henderson, before Jaka Bijol flicked on another long delivery in first-half stoppage time, allowing the in-form forward to head in a second.
Ampadu added Leeds United’s third on the hour mark, reacting quicker than Palace defenders to a loose ball from a second phase in the area and prodding in a first Premier League goal, before Anton Stach later completed the Premier League victory with a 20-yard free-kick beyond a rooted Henderson in the final action.
Palace grabbed a stoppage-time response in this Premier League clash when Justin Devenny converted a 92nd-minute penalty, awarded after Lucas Perri fouled Christantus Uche inside the box, and Devenny then struck the post with a close-range header moments later, missing a chance that was swiftly punished when Stach scored Leeds United’s fourth.
Calvert-Lewin’s double was the first top-flight brace for the striker since a match against Fulham in November 2020, and the forward continued that run to become the fourth Leeds player to net in five consecutive Premier League outings, matching Rod Wallace, Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink and Mark Viduka while facing favourite league opponents Crystal Palace.
The Leeds United forward had now scored seven Premier League goals against Crystal Palace, more than against any other opponent, while Farke’s team also hit at least three goals in a third straight Premier League home match for the first time since a spell between December 2001 and January 2002, when they briefly led the table under David O’Leary.
The opener from Ampadu’s long throw was also Leeds United’s first Premier League goal from a throw-in at Elland Road since a 4-1 victory over Wolves in February 2004, while Crystal Palace’s defeat meant successive Premier League losses for the first time since April, underlining the contrasting form of both clubs.
2003 - Dominic Calvert-Lewin is the first Leeds player to score in five successive Premier League appearances since Mark Viduka in August 2003. Upturn. pic.twitter.com/EJMTgOXfuMOptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 20, 2025
