With three wins from their opening nine Premier League matches, Leeds United have already gone against the label that often falls onto newly promoted sides as being relegation fodder.
It might not be as spectacular as Sunderland's Granit Xhaka-led efforts, but Daniel Farke's Whites now find themselves on double digits in terms of points collected, with a much-needed 2-1 home win against West Ham United on Friday night also seeing the West Yorkshire outfit get one over on a potential relegation rival.
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Yet again, Joe Rodon put in a valiant effort in the heart of Farke's defence, with his standout display against Nuno Espirito Santo's visitors further cementing his tag as Leeds' "most important player", as was handed to him at the start of the month by journalist Isaac Johnson.
Rodon's performance vs West Ham
The Welsh "warrior" - as he has also been lovingly labelled in the past by his manager - has gone on to be an ever-present part of the German's side, ever since Rodon was just a much-loved loan option from Tottenham Hotspur.
Rodon didn't miss a single Championship game last season as Leeds were crowned champions of the tricky division, and he has remained as one of the first names on the team sheet in the league above, too, and for very good reason.
The 28-year-old powerhouse would ensure the three points were sealed when heading home this corner unmarked, but it wasn't just this effort beating Alphonse Aréola in the Hammers' net that cemented his position in the Whites' good books.
Indeed, Rodon would also finish the contest with a 92% pass accuracy intact as a calm and controlled operator on the ball, on top of nine clearances also being registered to ensure the likes of former Leeds star Crysencio Summerville were kept quiet.
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If Leeds want to establish themselves as a formidable Premier League outfit and beat the drop come the end of the long campaign, they will need Rodon to keep up these imperious levels, with Farke very much aware of how much of an integral component he is to his team, having also once lauded him as "unbelievable" rock defensively.
However, another Leeds first-teamer is also deserving of his flowers, too, away from all the praise being dished out to the Swansea-born battler, with the star in question arguably putting in an even better performance than Rodon on Friday night.
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The 9/10 star who was even better than Rodon
Ultimately, it was a team effort that got the narrow win over the line, with Lucas Perri in between the sticks, having to make sure he stayed alert, with two saves tallied up on his return to Farke's starting lineup.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin also tirelessly threw himself into the contest, even if he didn't add to his solitary Leeds strike, with the easily scapegoated number nine winning eight duels in total.
D. Calvert-Lewin
But, as much as everyone did largely play their part in a second home win of the season being secured, Brenden Aaronson stood out as an extremely bright spark with his sublime individual display.
Aaronson would steer his side to their third three points of the Premier League season when being in the right place at the right time to convert a rebound after just three minutes. Yet, on another day, he could have also been remembered in even more glowing terms for being the audacious ace who fired home this sensational solo effort.
Unfortunately, the crossbar would then intervene.
But, this well-worked effort agonisingly scraping the crossbar shouldn't detract from Aaronson's otherwise near faultless night, with the American - who was labelled as "anonymous" by journalist James Marshment just last season - arguably standing out even more than Rodon when judging his all-round game.
Aaronson's performance in numbers
Stat
Minutes played
Goals scored
Assists
Touches
Shots
Accurate passes
Key passes
Successful dribbles
Recoveries
Total duels won
Stats by Sofascore
Across the 90 minutes, away from grabbing his early goal, the revitalised number 11 would also successfully complete all three of his dribbles as a constant menace for West Ham to contain, on top of also winning 80% of his ground duels to further reinforce his liveliness.
Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Graham Smyth would reward Aaronson for his standout showing with a 9/10 rating post-match, with Smyth stating that the 25-year-old put in a "tonne of hard work" to help the 2-1 win be secured.
Brenden-Aaronson
In time, Aaronson will hope that he's viewed as an undroppable Rodon-like cog in the Leeds machine, with his blistering display against the Hammers very much boosting his position in Farke's first team, moving forward into a busy November.