Leeds United 1-0 Sunderland, Rodon hint and Muharemovic impress in New Jersey | OneFootball

Leeds United secured a first pre-season win in New Jersey against Sunderland after a disciplined display.

A long-range strike decided a 1-0 contest and Alex Cairns kept a clean sheet as Sunderland wasted openings. According to yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk, the night offered useful pointers for Daniel Farke.

21 Leeds players featured, the entire outfield was changed, and only Cairns completed the full 90 minutes.

With Pascal Struijk now at Brighton, the deputy role under club captain Ethan Ampadu is vacant. Joe Rodon captained at the Sports Illustrated Stadium, Ampadu was on the bench, and Callum Mills was the only academy starter. Entering a fourth season after three years at the core of a changing squad, Rodon looks the obvious choice and is a vocal presence.

New £34 million centre-back Tarik Muharemovic, 23, started and impressed. He snuffed out an Enzo Le Fee through-ball and crunched Brian Brobbey, then showed composure with crisp passes and raking diagonals, including a pinpoint ball to Jayden Bogle.

Fluency was lacking in attack, the breakthrough arriving when Ao Tanaka robbed Le Fee and a ricochet fell to Lukas Nmecha rather than via crafted build-up. Without Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Noah Okafor, and with Wilson still bedding in, Leeds looked flat as Daniel James missed chances and Joel Piroe and Willy Gnonto had little impact. They look solid defensively and, if a £40 million move for James Trafford is completed, stronger still, but depth beyond Wilson, Okafor and Calvert-Lewin appears light with a month of the window left.

Source: yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk