Brenden Aaronson made an impressive return to Leeds United in Wednesday’s pre-season friendly against Hannover.
Aaronson started and played the opening 45 minutes as Leeds ran out comfortable 4-1 winners thanks to goals from Ilia Gruev, Joel Piroe and Mateo Joseph (2).
It did not take the American long to make an impact on his first game back since deciding to snub offers elsewhere and give it a second go at Elland Road.
It was his brilliantly disguised pass that setup Leeds’ opening goal for Ilia Gruev, as he offered supporters a potential sign of things to come for the season ahead.
Daniel Farke has already revealed how desperate Aaronson is to play for Leeds again, even returning a few days early from his holiday to begin pre-season.
Aaronson addresses potential Leeds fan criticism
Aaronson was one of eight players to leave on loan in the wake of relegation last season, decisions that were met with fierce criticism by Leeds supporters.
It had not looked like there would be any way for back Aaronson at Leeds, but making the choice to comeback so early in the summer has given fans time to digest the news of his return.
Aaronson still has a lot of work to do to get fans fully back on his side, and in an interview with the Yorkshire Evening Post, he was asked about the prospect of a potentially negative reaction from supporters.
The 23-year-old opened up and did admit it is something that has made him a little nervous, but wants to prove to everyone he is back at Elland Road to work hard and get Leeds promoted.
He said: “Yeah, of course I think that, I mean with Leeds’ fan base, it’s a fan base that’s huge, that has a big following that really looks after the players and definitely has feelings at times.
“But I think yeah, it’s always a little nerve racking because I’m an emotional guy. I like to be well-liked at the end of the day, but I know that there’s going to be some people that aren’t happy and that kind of thing.
“But what I will say is I’m just coming back to help the team and I always give my all on the pitch and I think they’ll be able to see that.”
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What Daniel Farke has said on both Aaronson and Max Wober
Aaronson is not the only one of Leeds’ loan army who looks set to play a big part next season, with his former Red Bull Salzburg teammate Max Wober also back in the squad.
There will always be some scepticism regarding their decisions to return but Farke knows both have a big part to play for the year ahead.
Speaking after last Friday’s win in Harrogate, he said: “First of all we will have the guys back with Brenden Aaronson and Max Wober. This will be beneficial for us.
“Max will arrive tomorrow and start with some testing. Hopefully also from Sunday onwards with us in the first team on the pitch. It is important to have these lads back.”
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