Junior Firpo wowed by what he’s seen ‘special’ Mateo Joseph do at Leeds United
Leeds United defender Junior Firpo has raved about “special” Mateo Joseph ahead of the new Championship season.
The 20-year-old made 26 appearances in all competitions last season, with his only starts coming in the FA Cup, where he scored two goals in the 3-2 defeat to Chelsea in February.
Joseph spent last term as deputy to Joel Piroe, Georginio Rutter and Patrick Bamford, with the latter only managing eight league goals.
With Premier League promotion a priority this season, Joseph has been working hard in pre-season to impress Daniel Farke, and his efforts have also caught the eyes of his teammates.
“With Mateo it’s a special thing because he came here when he was really young,” Junior Firpo said of Joseph, to The Athletic (4 August).
“I’ve been with him all these years and I’ve seen him growing up to become the player that he is right now. It’s not just scoring lots of goals – he puts all the effort in.
“You can see him tracking back, defending with us, holding the ball, going on the counter. He has everything to be a really good striker so whatever we go with, if it’s Mateo, Patrick or Joel it’s really good options and we just have to work for them to try to bring them up the pitch. I’ll try to make the most assists for them as I can to score goals.”
Mateo Joseph could lead the line for Leeds United this season
Joseph has had to remain patient at Elland Road following his move from Espanyol in 2022, but he could be the man to lift the doom and gloom atmosphere surrounding Leeds in the build-up to the new season.
The Championship play-off final loss to Southampton has had severe repercussions on the side, as missing out on the riches of the Premier League left the Whites needing to sell their star assets to abide by Profit and Sustainability rules.
Archie Gray left the club for Tottenham last month and Crysencio Summerville has finalised his move to West Ham United, as the Whites lost two of their promising young stars, but Joseph is lying in waiting to take the reigns at Elland Road.
The Spain U21 international has been on fire in pre-season with four goals, including the first in the 2-1 victory against Valencia in the final match before the real business begins, and he has to get the nod over Bamford for the Championship opener.
His performances are a result of hard work in individual training over the summer which started four days after the play-off final defeat at Wembley. His determination to play for the Leeds badge has to be commended, in a summer where last season’s star performers secured moves away from Elland Road.
Leeds are still entering the new season as one of the favourites to win the division this season. The bulk of the squad that last played in the Premier League remains intact, and Joseph will be surrounded with some of the best players in the second tier to become a success this season.
In other Leeds United news, Brenden Aaronson has sent a message on Instagram after the Whites finalised a major transfer.
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