Leeds United striker Mateo Joseph is enjoying a dream year in 2024.
The turn of the New Year represented almost the exact time Daniel Farke started trusting him more with cameo appearances from the bench, which has now developed into him becoming Leeds‘ first choice number nine.
Joseph netted his first goals for Leeds back away at Chelsea during a 3-2 FA Cup defeat back in March, before then scoring for the first time in the league to earn a 2-2 draw at Watford in April.
There were calls for Joseph to get a proper run in the side during the back end of last season but it was not until August that Farke really placed his trust in the Spaniard.
Joseph has started eight of Leeds’ nine Championship matches, and although he has only scored once, has impressed the likes of Tony Dorigo.
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Joseph shares his best moment at Leeds so far
Though it is only this year Joseph has come into the reckoning at Leeds, Joseph did actually appear a handful of times under Jesse Marsch.
Joseph came off the bench in away matches at Tottenham, Manchester United and Chelsea, meaning he has already had a taste of the big time in the Premier League.
However, if Joseph wants to establish himself as a consistent top level player, he needs to continue his development in the Championship and really find that killer instinct in senior football.
Joseph has certainly shown signs he has it, none more so than with that brace at Stamford Bridge, which the 20-year-old says is something he could only dream of as a kid after watching Chelsea in big European nights.
Via an interview with journalist Luis Cobos, he said: “Debuting in Premier and scoring a double at Stamford Bridge were very beautiful moments. But I’ll stay with the second one. It’s a stadium that you’ve been watching games since you were little.
“I remember watching many Chelsea games in the Champions League. And being able to score two goals to a team like that is something that so far in my short career is very important.”
Will Joseph be fit for Leeds’ clash with Sheffield United?
Joseph is winning plenty of admirers for his performances at Leeds and plenty of them are coming from his native homeland of Spain.
He netted a first half hattrick on his full debut for Spain U21s against Kazakhstan last week, but was left out of the squad completely for their win over Malta on Tuesday.
However, his omission was not thought to be injury related, with Joseph taking part in Spain’s final session and media duties before the game.
Farke also did not mention anything about him being injured in his press conference, indicating he will indeed be fit for Sheffield United.
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