Loan Watch | Your guide to this weekend's action

There's no Academy action this weekend but all of our youngsters on loan have fixtures to look forward to.

Manor Solomon and Dane Scarlett will face off on Saturday as promotion-chasing Leeds host relegation-threatened Oxford United, after Ashley Phillips' Stoke City travel to Sheffield Wednesday at lunchtime.

It's all eyes on a single League One fixture, as Josh Keeley and Jamie Donley will meet Matthew Craig when Leyton Orient travel to Oakwell and take on Barnsley at 3pm.

George Abbott's Notts County will be looking to push back up towards the play-off spots after a run of five league games without a win when they take on 10th-placed Bradford City at Meadow Lane.

In non-league, Bishop's Stortford and Elliot Krasniqi host Leiston, while Carey Bloedorn's Aveley travel to Bath City.

Manor Solomon and Dane Scarlett

Manor has featured in each of the last 12 Championship games for Leeds as Daniel Farke's free-scoring side have found the back of the net 22 times and lost just once in that run.

A win on Saturday could take the Whites top of the Championship table at Christmas, but would need results to go their way, as they trail current leaders Sheffield United by three points.

This is the first league meeting between these sides since 1990 and Oxford have only won of the last six meetings between them - although that came at Elland Road thanks to a 3-2 FA Cup win back in 1994.

Despite guiding the Yellows to promotion, Des Buckingham was relieved of his duties following last week's 3-1 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday - a result which left them above the relegation zone on goal difference, with just one win in their last 15 league games.

Former Birmingham, Derby and Millwall manager Gary Rowett has taken the reigns at the Kassam Stadium and has lost just one of his last six meetings with Leeds.

Should he be involved, this will be Dane's second appearance at Elland Road, having featured as a second-half substitute in our 4-0 win back in 2021/22, and comes into this one as his side's joint-top goalscorer having bagged four in his last 11 appearances.

Ashley Phillips

Ash has completed 95 per cent of the available minutes in Stoke City's last 10 league games but the Potters have been unable to get themselves out of the bottom half of the table so far this season.

Narcis Pelach's side have won just twice in that run, which has yielded four draws and two clean sheets - with three of their four defeats coming against sides inside the top four.

Despite the respectable results the club are still 17th in the Championship table, five points above the drop zone but 12 points away from the play-off spots.

They head to Yorkshire searching for their first win since the start of November, to face a Sheffield Wednesday side who have lost just one of their last six league games.

The Potters haven't won at Hillsborough since November, 2005, with Tony Pulis' side running out 2-0 winners that day, the club's only victory in their last nine league visits - a run stretching back 40 years to the month, December, 1984.

Matthew Craig, Josh Keeley and Jamie Donley

Just one win in their last six league games has seen Barnsley drop out of the League One play-off places of late - although that victory came last time out as they came from behind to beat Exeter City 2-1.

That win at St James' Park brought them back to within a point of sixth-placed Reading, although the Royals, and Bolton who are level on points with the Tykes, have one and two games in hand respectively.

The Oakwell outfit are unbeaten in their last six league meetings with Leyton Orient, winning four in a run that stretches back to 1981.

Orient have now gone 270 minutes without conceding, as Josh Keeley has kept back-to-back-to-back clean sheets as his side have picked up two wins and a draw in that time.

That run has allowed Richie Wellens' side to jump out of the bottom four, as they now sit 18th, three points clear of the relegation places with the same gap to the top half.

The club haven't won at Oakwell since a 2-1 win 55 years ago, as February's 2-1 defeat was the first time they'd scored at the venue since that victory in 1969.

The O's are fifth in the form table between matchdays 13 and 20, winning four with just a sole defeat to Huddersfield, while boasting the strongest defensive record - conceding just three times in 630 minutes of football.

George Abbott

After being among the pace-setters early on, a five-game winless streak has seen Notts County drop from the automatic promotion spots in third down to 11th in the League Two table.

George has been in 75 per cent of the starting sides and completed 78 per cent of all the available league minutes since he signed, contributing an assist against Chesterfield and a wonder goal in the FA Cup against Peterborough.

Already boasting a strong goal difference, a win could lift Stuart Maynard's side back into the play-off places, should results go their way this weekend, however visitors Bradford also come into the game with the same incentive.

Under the stewardship of Graham Alexander, the Bantams have been consistently in the play-off chase this season, despite coming into the game having won just one of their last seven league games - with back-to-back defeats at the end of October and start of November knocking them out of the top seven.

The former Premier League side returned to winning ways last time out with a 1-0 win over troubled Swindon, but haven't won at Meadow Lane in the league since February, 2008, six visits ago. County are unbeaten in the last three meetings between the sides, and did the double over Bradford last season.

Elliot Krasniqi and Carey Bloedorn

Elliot Krasniqi's Bishop's Stortford side have the chance to end 2024 in the top half of the Isthmian Southern Central Division with a win this weekend.

Back-to-back defeats against promotion chasing Kettering Town and Stratford Town have knocked Steve Smith's side back into the bottom half of the table but a win against Leiston, who are two places and one point above the Blues, could lift them back up as high as 10th.

Regardless of results this weekend, Carey Bloedorn's Aveley will spend Christmas inside the relegation zone in the National League South.

A recent run of form has lifted Danny Scopes' side from the foot of the table up to 21st, and they're now just four points from safety.

That gap could become just a single point with victory this weekend, as they travel to the side directly above them in the table, Bath City - who come into the game having won just one of their last 11 league games, and two in their last 15 in all competitions.

Fellow goalkeeper Charlie Warren's Barton Rovers side aren't back in action until Boxing Day.