Leeds United head coach Daniel Farke will surely be pleased with how his side has adapted to Premier League football after their promotion from the Championship.
The last six teams to have come up from the second tier have all been relegated at the first time of asking, and the Whites, Sunderland, and Burnley are hoping to avoid making it nine from nine.
Leeds have racked up eight points in seven matches in the Premier League so far this season, lifting them above the relegation zone, in what has been an impressive start to the campaign.
They lost 2-1 to Tottenham Hotspur last time out in the top-flight at Elland Road, but they had a 2-2 draw with Bournemouth and a 3-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers, which included a stunning goal from Anton Stach, prior to that.
The German central midfielder smashed his free-kick right into the top corner for his first goal for the club after his move from Hoffenheim in the summer window.
Another signing from the summer transfer window who has impressed since his arrival at Elland Road is exciting wide attacker Noah Okafor.
Where Noah Okafor ranks among Leeds United's attackers
It may not be unfair to suggest that the Switzerland international is the best and most effective attacker within Farke’s first-team squad in the Premier League this season.
Okafor, who was signed from AC Milan, has hit the ground running in English football with two goals in four starts in the Premier League, per Sofascore, which is twice as many goals as any other player in the team has managed.
He is the only Leeds player who has scored more than one goal this season in the top-flight, with his strikes against Wolves and Spurs, and that suggests that the forward is, at the very least, the most effective goalscorer in the attacking ranks.
Sofascore rating
7.06
1st
xG
1.16
2nd
Goals
2
1st
Minutes per goal
153
2nd
Big chances created
1
2nd
Dribbles completed per game
2.2
1st
Key passes per game
0.8
2nd
As you can see in the table above, Okafor ranks either first or second in a host of key attacking metrics for the Whites in the Premier League, which speaks to how influential he has been at the top end of the pitch in the early stages of the campaign.
The Swiss speedster, who scored in the 2-1 defeat to Spurs last time out, is an electric dribbler who can score goals and create chances for his teammates, which makes him an invaluable part of Farke’s attack.
Despite that, Transfermarkt have Okafor as the 13th-most valuable member of the squad, at £11m, and the seventh-most valuable winger or striker, even below Jack Harrison at £12m.
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Another player who is worth even more than the Switzerland international, despite his impressive form in the Premier League, is central defender Pascal Struijk, whom the Whites have hit the jackpot with since his move to the club from Ajax.
Leeds have hit the jackpot with Pascal Struijk
The Dutch central defender joined the club at U21 level on a free transfer at the start of 2018, as his contract with Ajax was due to expire, and he was able to rise through the ranks at Thorp Arch.
Struijk made seven appearances for the U21 team before he emerged as a regular first-team squad member in the 2020/21 Premier League season under Marcelo Bielsa, playing 27 times, per Transfermarkt.
The left-footed star has since racked up 166 appearances for the first-team in all competitions for the West Yorkshire outfit, and has started all seven of the club’s league matches this season.
Struijk was particularly important to the club’s promotion to the Premier League last season, scoring five goals in 35 appearances, as he formed a reliable partnership with Joe Rodon.
The 26-year-old titan, who scored two late goals in a dramatic comeback against Sunderland, kept 14 clean sheets in 31 starts in the second tier last term, per Sofascore, which speaks to how defensively solid the team were with him in it.
Farke has kept his faith in both Rodon and Struijk, despite the signings of Jaka Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw, in the Premier League so far this season.
The German boss described him as a “crucial” player back in 2023, and he still relies on the Dutchman, even if his performances this term have not quite been up to scratch.
Tackles
6
Bottom 34%
Duels won
19
Bottom 40%
Duel success rate
43.2%
Bottom 3%
Aerial duel success rate
46.4%
Bottom 13%
Interceptions
2
Bottom 9%
Blocked shots
2
Bottom 34%
As you can see in the table above, Struijk currently ranks among the worst centre-backs in the division in a host of defensive statistics, which suggests that he needs to improve his performances if he wants to remain in the side.
Despite his slightly concerning form at this moment in time, the Dutch star is valued at a whopping £15.6m by Transfermarkt, which means that he is worth more than Okafor (£11m). He is also the joint-fourth most valuable player at the club, per Transfermarkt.
Considering that the Whites picked him up from Ajax’s academy and he started his career in England at U21 level, it is fair to say that Leeds hit the jackpot when they signed Struijk back in 2018.
He has developed into, at the very least, a Championship promotion-winning central defender, and one of the most valuable players in the squad at £15.6m.
At the age of 26, Struijk also has plenty of time left ahead of him to increase in value, but he must first turn his Premier League form around and show that he is good enough to start week-in-week-out in a top-flight side that can avoid relegation.
