As he wheeled away to celebrate his fourth goal at Pride Park, Mateo Joseph knew he had sent out a real statement with his performance for Leeds United under-21s. The Whites weren’t short of impressive performers on Friday night as they saw off their Derby County counterparts 5-2 to start their Premier League 2 Division 2 campaign in style.
Archie Gray, Sonny Perkins, Darko Gyabi, Jeremiah Mullen and Dan James, who featured as captain due to his first-team suspension, all managed to catch the eye during in the win. However, Joseph was undoubtedly the best player on the field on Friday night, notching a first-half hat-trick and adding another in the second half to cap a tremendous display.
The 18-year-old had a pre-season to remember as he bagged a goal in the club’s friendly win over Blackpool at the LNER Community Stadium and that seemed to have him flying high in confidence come kick-off against the Rams. From the off Joseph was lively, harrying defenders and showing for the ball at every opportunity as Leeds’ front four grasped control of the game.
