Leeds United jumped up into second place in the Championship on Friday night as they secured a 1-0 win over Bristol City at Ashton Gate.
Wilfried Gnonto scored the only goal of the game as the Whites ran out fairly comfortable winners in a game they dominated and, perhaps, should have won by more goals.
Leicester
1
29
69
Leeds
2
30
60
Ipswich
3
28
59
Southampton
4
28
58
West Brom
5
28
45
Coventry
6
29
44
Daniel Farke's side created plenty of opportunities to find the back of the net, as Crysencio Summerville and Georginio Rutter both missed big chances, but came away with all three points thanks to their one strike.
Gnonto caught the eye with his excellent display in place of the injured Dan James but the real hero of the night for the German head coach was towering defender Joe Rodon.
Wilfried Gnonto's match-winning contributions
The Italy international has had to wait patiently for his opportunity to impress in the Championship and grasped his opportunity to impress with both hands.
Junior Firpo's searching pass forward had too much on it for Georginio Rutter and Gnonto was intelligent enough to run across from his right wing position to pick the ball up and then expertly finish to make it 1-0 in the 48th minute.
He also completed 100% (25/25) of his attempted passes as the young gem held onto possession and played a part in his side's dominance of the ball.
However, the former Zurich star did not create a single chance for his teammates and that is an area he could look to improve in, with 0.3 key passes per game and zero 'big chances' created in the league this season.
Joe Rodon's defensive dominance at Ashton Gate
Whilst Gnonto deserves plenty of credit, as explained above, for his contributions, the real hero of the night for Farke was his Tottenham Hotspur loanee at centre-back.
Andy Hinchcliffe, who was the co-commentator on Sky Sports' live coverage of the game, described Rodon's last-ditch defending as "outstanding" for Leeds towards the end of the game.
The Whites enjoyed 61% of the ball and the hosts only mustered seven shots on goal, with one on target, and that was helped by the Wales international's strong play in and out of possession.
On the ball, Rodon had 99 touches of the ball – more than any other player on the pitch – and completed 88% of his attempted passes throughout the game, as he dictated play from the back and made sure that Leeds played through the thirds with poise and control.
Off the ball, the 26-year-old titan made a few vital contributions. He made two clearances and one block for his side and they all came within the last ten minutes of the match as Bristol City started to push for an equaliser with balls into the box.
Rodon made one huge block to stop Illan Meslier from being worked after a dangerous cross was sent into the box and the aforementioned Hinchcliffe described his subsequent header clear as "towering".
Therefore, the Spurs loanee, who dominated with three of his five duels won, was the real hero thanks to his composed and assured play in possession and his vital contributions within his own box to stop the hosts from equalising late on.