Ao Tanaka was very clear about how he viewed Leeds United's 2-1 success over West Ham United, and he will take the same attitude in the next two big matches as well.
"A win is a win," he said, bluntly.
"We were not the best, but we got the three points. We know how important this game was, so we are so happy to get these points.
"These four games – especially these four games, including Burnley – until the (November) international break are so important. We play against Burnley, Brighton, West Ham and Nottingham Forest.
"We needed to win this game."
The Premier League table is slowly taking shape, and looks better for Leeds than West Ham. Some Leeds fans might not give a monkey's how the Hammers fare, but the reality for a newly-promoted side is they need three teams they can be better than.
In the last two seasons, that has been impossible. Now, shambolic West Ham are sticking their hands up, as are Wolverhampton Wanderers, another side Leeds have beaten.
That is the other side of the equation – Leeds must make the most of games against teams of that quality and having lost to Burnley six days earlier, it was vital to keep their head above the point-a-game mark.
FOCUS: Ao Tanaka, pictured tangling with West Ham United's Lucas Paqueta (Image: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)placeholder image
FOCUS: Ao Tanaka, pictured tangling with West Ham United's Lucas Paqueta (Image: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)
For 25 minutes, a landslide looked on with West Ham all over the place and Leeds clinical.
When Alphonse Areola pushed Noak Okafor’s header towards Brenden Aaronson as Aaron Wan-Bissaka watched, the American did what he failed to at Burnley and found the net, starting a brilliant display which also saw him hit the crossbar after an outstanding run.
When Lucas Paqueta lost Joe Rodon at a well-delivered Sean Longstaff corner, the Welshman did what manager Daniel Farke has been on his case to do since they started working together, and headed a goal.
A shoulder injury to Ollie Scarles midway through the first half allowed Nuno Espirito Santo to rip up his failed tactics and Paqueta had a goal scrubbed off for a marginal offside after 37 minutes.
GOAL: Joe Rodon (centre) (Image: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)placeholder image
GOAL: Joe Rodon (centre) (Image: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)
But the biggest change was Leeds lost the eye of the tiger in front of goal, wasting chances.
In the second half they sat back and invited trouble West Ham looked incapable of delivering. Still, with Paqueta, Jarrod Bowen and – until he was substituted to the glee of many in Elland Road – Crysencio Summerville on the field, it was impossible to breath easily.
The header Mateus Fernandes glanced in after 90 minutes was too little, too late.
"In the first half we were sometimes a bit too wild, we wanted to be a bit more compact," said Farke.
DIGGING IN: Leeds United manager Daniel Farke (right) embraces Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Image: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)placeholder image
DIGGING IN: Leeds United manager Daniel Farke (right) embraces Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Image: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)
"In the first half we always went for the counter-attack. If we always go for just counter-attack we then have to defend for three minutes and just have 10 seconds counter-attacking before we are defending.
"We needed periods when we keep the ball and this is what we did, especially in the first 25 minutes (of the second half).
"The last 20 minutes was again different because we couldn't control possession due to the fact that we were getting more and more tired but I think we covered the highest distance in the whole season so far and this under these circumstances is pretty good.
"You could feel in the first reaction in the dressing room they were relieved but also unbelievably exhausted because the mental pressure these young lads had to handle in the last weeks was massive.
"They've delivered really good performance but (results) just slipped away with missing chances or conceding unlucky goals."
Tanaka, who provided a lot of energy in place of Anton Stach before his own reserves ran low, called the performance "not what we want.
"We want to create a chance, we want to have the ball, we want to dominate the game," he explained.
"But sometimes, we have to adapt because we were winning 2-0.
"We have to win at home because we know how good the atmosphere is at this stadium.
"It doesn't matter about the opponent, we have to win."
The "circumstances" Farke referred to sounded significant, with illness sweeping Thorp Arch. Ethan Ampadu was asked to push through because Farke felt he could not leave out everyone under the weather.
So was Okafor, forcing Farke to go with safer options than Daniel James, just back from injury, on the other wing until very late on.
Pascal Struijk's illness perhaps made his job easier, a straightforward excuse to hand Jaka Bijol a Premier League debut after a few vulnerabilities by the Dutchman proved costly in recent weeks.
Farke's cautious nature when his side are in front is certainly not to everyone's liking but Tanaka hit the nail on the head.
A win is a win.