Leeds United got back to their old ways of picking up vital points on the road after they drew 1-1 against Everton on Monday night.
Prior to that, Leeds’ last away trip in the Premier League was the chaotic 4-3 defeat against Newcastle, which snapped the Whites’ lengthy unbeaten run up until that point.
Whilst wins away from home are still a rarity for Leeds at this stage, with just one all season, Daniel Farke’s side have done well to pick up draws in three of their last four matches away from Elland Road.
After surviving an Everton onslaught in the second half, one member of Leeds’ backline shared his thoughts on United’s first-ever trip to the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Joe Rodon shares thoughts on draw against Everton
As expected, Rodon was one of the existing Leeds players who proved they can handle the jump up to the Premier League from the Championship.
The 28-year-old has been an ever-present in United’s backline so far this season, featuring in all but two of their league games.
Speaking after the game to the media, Rodon shared his thoughts on Leeds picking up a draw that saw their gap to the bottom three become six points.
“I thought we started very good, strong, fast, it was unfortunate that we could not get a second goal.
“I think when you are on top of the ball, you have to take advantage of those moments, especially when you are away from home.
“Second half, I think we needed to be a bit better at managing the game and controlling it. We did not really get our foot on the ball and play, so credit to them, they kept coming.
Rodon continued, “I thought we defended well in large moments of the game. But yeah, overall, it was a challenge.
“Six points is the gap, and we do not really want to look behind, we want to look up and keep pushing as we have done over the last two months.
“We are getting there every day, and I am going to keep building on that.”
The fact that senior members of this Leeds side believe that they have the ability to look at overtaking the teams above them in the Premier League table will be something welcomed by supporters, who won’t want the relegation battle to be coming down to the final day when they face West Ham.
Data suggests Joe Rodon impressed against Everton
Although Leeds were under significant amounts of pressure for the majority of the second half against Everton, Rodon and Co. did well to limit the hosts to very few clear-cut opportunities.
Despite all their possession and momentum, Leeds managed to limited Everton to just one big chance in the second half.
Rodon himself also had a solid game, with the data supporting this fact.
Joe Rodon vs Everton – Match Stats
| Stat | Joe Rodon |
|---|---|
| Defensive Contributions | 11 |
| Clearances | 7 |
| Recoveries | 1 |
| Ground Duels (Won) | 5 (4) |
| Aerial Duels (Won) | 1 (1) |
If Rodon and the rest of the Leeds defence can continue to be hard to beat on the road, whilst mixing in some valuable wins at Elland Road, then relegation will not be anything that supporters need to worry about come the backend of the season.
