Leeds United have finally achieved another win on their own patch of the Premier League this season.
The Whites’ last home success in the league dates back to the opening day, before Friday night’s clash with lowly West Ham United.
However, Elland Road’s misdeeds were put to rest as a quick-fire double early on in a tense game gave Daniel Farke’s side a much-needed 2-1 win and pushed the Hammers further into the relegation hole.
Some of the night’s top performances ensured they secured the three points as Leeds thankfully ended a three-game winless run in the league.
Leeds United’s top performers against West Ham
Leeds fans going into Friday night’s encounter under the floodlights at Elland Road will be bemoaning their side’s recent lackadaisical display in the league, despite having 14 shots on target at Burnley’s goal in a 2-0 defeat at Turf Moor.
But this wastefulness did not show up against coach Nuno Espirito Santo’s relaxed visitors. With just 15 minutes left in the first half, Brenden Aaronson scored a rebound, giving Leeds a two-goal cushion after a great first-half punch.
As well as this important contribution, Aaronson flashed brightly throughout the night, completing 100% of his dribbles and becoming a notable thorn in a leaky West Ham side.
With 80% of his ground battles won, it’s safe to say that everyone praised the American when the full-time whistle rang, even though Falke often said he could be a “polarizing” presence.
Joe Rodon will also be heaped with praise after doubling his tally of Premier League goals this season with his stunning corner kick after the 2-1 win. Sean Longstaff also picked up an assist in the process, leaving plenty of space for the Welshman to get around the busy Alphonse Areola.
Lucas Perry was also prominent between the sticks on his return to the Leeds eleven, having had to stay calm to thwart an acrobatic Jarrod Bowen shot shortly after Aaronson’s instinctive opener. He too came close to keeping a clean sheet, but Matheus Fernandes gave the Hammers an equalizer at the death.
However, despite the relief of a trickle of wins, not all of Los Blancos’ first-team players were at their best against the East Londoners, and the rusty squad is at risk of losing their place in Farke’s main squad as competition intensifies in November.
6/10 Leeds star could be dropped now
Of course, there will be concerns in West Yorkshire about Dominic Calvert-Lewin going on to the next game without hitting Leeds’ strike, especially against such a benevolent Hammers defense.
Still, no one could deny the No.9’s determined work ethic for the team. When he threw himself into the middle of the action, he won a total of eight duels.
Tanaka’s performance in numbers | |
|---|---|
status | Tanaka |
Play time (minutes) | 72 |
Number of points | 0 |
assist | 0 |
touch | 37 |
shot | 1 |
exact path | 25/29 (86%) |
key pass | 0 |
Total number of duels won | 1/3 |
Statistics by Sofa Score | |
On the contrary, Aoi Tanaka will fail to win a ground duel and leave the contest with a 72 mark, as Falke may prepare to reshuffle his midfield squad for the test against Brighton & Hove Albion early next month, potentially keeping Japan’s treasure from restarting.
Indeed, while Ethan Ampadu and the aforementioned Longstaff made their presence known, the number 22 was absent from the game as Ampadu took 66 touches on the ball and had three successful ground duels, and Tanaka actually blew the full-time whistle fewer touches than Perry, with 37, second only to the former Lyon stopper’s 51.
Tanaka’s quiet performance was picked up by Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Graham Smith, who reserved a high rating of 9/10 compared to the likes of Aaronson, but the former Fortuna Düsseldorf player was only given a middling rating of 6/10 after the dust settled in a 2-1 win.
Smith would only point out that Tanaka’s performance was “mixed” as the 27-year-old fell victim to “lack of muscle” on several occasions, as evidenced by his 100% loss in ground combat.
It will be interesting to see whether manager Farke decides to remove Tanaka as the team faces tough away matches against Brighton, Nottingham Forest and Manchester City. This is because while the results have generally been very positive against a team on the brink of relegation, the slight off-season for No. 22 stands out as a rare negative.
