Ah, the curious case of Brenden Aaronson. A much-criticised member of this Leeds United side but one that continues to work his socks off and on Sunday night, he got the moment he’s deserved.
Leeds had knocked on Derby’s door throughout the match. Aaronson himself probably had some of the best chances, blazing a half-volley over in the first half before firing a shot at Derby’s Jacob Zetterstrom.
It looked like another standard Aaronson display. Huge amounts of energy, constantly involved, good transitional play and passing, but lacking the end product. He thought he was going to be subbed off.
Such was his frustration on the night. But, the USA star remained on the pitch even though he looked as if he was making his way over to the bench to actually be replaced, only to find he wasn’t leaving the pitch.
Daniel Farke jokes Leeds United star Brenden Aaronson is “weird”
Just nine minutes after Farke made his substitutions, it was the £25m man who scored the only goal of the game. Timing his run to perfection, he latched on to Piroe’s pass to curl home a shot from 10 yards.
His seventh goal of the season, and ninth goal contribution. Aaronson wants 30 goals and assists and he is some way off that, but he is certainly improving his tally and Farke joked about the playmaker after.
“He is a weird guy. Probably saw the wrong number. I love this guy, he has impressive numbers. He could have been a bit more on it in the first half. He has so much energy,” Farke said in his press conference.
Brenden Aaronson’s stats for Leeds in win against Derby County
There will always be doubters with Aaronson. Largely, because he cost £25m and then because some are still angry with the eight players that left on loan after relegation – Aaronson one of them, joining Union.
Brenden Aaronson’s stats for Leeds v Derby:
- 89 minutes played, 7.6 FotMob rating (fifth-best on pitch)
- Four shots, two shots on target, one goal
- 45 touches, 21 successful passes out of possible 24
Understandable, but Aaronson is a confidence player and if he has the backing of fans, he is going to excel. Indeed, Aaronson has said himself that the fans mean so much to him, and is desperate to please.
But the numbers show that actually, Aaronson is losing less duels. His end product is improving too, with four goals and assists in his last five games. If Leeds are to get promoted, Aaronson will be crucial to that.
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