Leeds United’s attackers made headlines on Saturday after defeating Plymouth Argyle 3-0 at Elland Road in the Championship.
Dan James, Joel Piroe, and Brenden Aaronson all scored in the first half to help the Whites secure all three points, with Wilfried Gnonto assisting on the opening goal.
As a result, all four attackers who started the game in the front four finished the first half with one goal for Daniel Farke.
In addition to those attacking stars, the Whites had a number of other standout performances around the pitch in their victory over Wayne Rooney’s team.
Leeds’ top performers against Plymouth
Ao Tanaka was Leeds’ standout midfielder, completing 91% of his passes and winning five of his six duels.
In addition to those attacking stars, the Whites had a number of other standout performances around the pitch in their victory over Wayne Rooney’s team.
Pascal Struijk, a central defender, also stood out for his performance in the heart of the defence, winning seven of his 11 duels and preventing the visiting side from registering a single shot.
Right-back Sam Byram made another fantastic effort for the Whites, replacing Jayden Bogle, who was suspended after earning his fifth yellow card of the season against Bristol City.
In the last two games, Byram has won 14 of 19 duels and completed seven tackles without being dribbled past by an opponent.
He also created two ‘big opportunities’ for his teammates during that time, indicating that the former Norwich star has excelled at both ends of the ball, making him unstoppable.
| 23/24 Championship | Sam Byram |
|---|---|
| Appearances | 33 |
| Sofascore rating | 7.12 |
| Tackles + interceptions per game | 2.8 |
| Ground duel success rate | 56% |
| Aerial duel success rate | 56% |
| Stats via Sofascore | |
As shown in the table above, Byram appeared in 33 of the club’s 46 league games last season and was a dominant defensive presence, winning the bulk of his duels on the ground and in the air.
It was a remarkable performance given that the last time he made more than 22 league games in a season was with Leeds in 2014/15, prior to his periods with West Ham and Norwich.
This demonstrates that Farke struck gold with Byram, taking a chance on the defender and been rewarded for his faith with a player who is now unstoppable on current form and has played more than he did at his previous two teams.
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