Karl Darlow Wins April Save of the Month Against Wolves
Karl Darlow won the Premier League’s April Save of the Month after a point-blank tip over from Ladislav Krejci’s six-yard header against Wolves. The stop preserved Leeds United’s two-goal cushion and adds an individual award to a season in which Darlow started as number two before forcing his way back to first choice for a second straight year.
Darlow and Wolves
The save came from close range and left no margin for error. Krejci met the ball from six yards, Darlow pushed it over, and Leeds kept the cushion that stood behind the award.
It is the first time a Leeds United goalkeeper has won the award. Darlow is also out of contract this summer, which gives the recognition a sharper edge than a routine monthly prize.
Leeds Goalkeeper Battle
Darlow’s route to the award matters because it mirrors his season. He began as Leeds’ number two, then forced his way into the first-choice role again, a shift that underlines how quickly the pecking order changed at Elland Road.
The timing fits a Leeds side still in a survival push. For a goalkeeper who moved from backup status to the main job, the April award lands as the clearest individual marker of that rise.
Leeds at First Direct Arena
The award also arrived during a busy week around the squad. Several Leeds players, including Darlow, Sean Longstaff, Sam Byram, Ethan Ampadu, Alex Cairns and Wilfried Gnonto, attended the darts version of the Premier League at the First Direct Arena on Thursday, where Luke Littler beat Leeds fan Luke Humphries 6-5 in the final.
That same week brought a reminder of how closely Leeds track football’s rules around preparation. On Friday, an allegation emerged that Southampton spied on a Middlesbrough training session before their Championship play-off semi-final, and the EFL is investigating the allegation and has charged Southampton with two breaches of its regulations. Leeds were fined £200,000 in 2019 after Marcelo Bielsa sent a staff member to watch Derby County train.
For Darlow, the immediate change is simple: the April award now sits beside a run of form that restored him to the top of Leeds’ goalkeeping order. With his contract due to expire this summer, the stop against Wolves carries extra weight because it is now the clearest evidence of what he has delivered since taking the shirt back.
