Brenden Aaronson admitted it has been “tough mentally” after notching his first goal of the season in Friday’s 2-1 win against West Ham at Elland Road.
The United States midfielder turned home a rebound in the third minute before Joe Rodon headed Leeds 2-0 up in the 15th minute. Mateus Fernandes’ last-minute header was too little too late for the Hammers.
Aaronson, who missed a golden chance for Leeds in last week’s 2-0 defeat at Burnley, told LUTV: “It was a relief for me, to be honest with you. Letting the team down a little bit last week, not scoring, it was tough mentally because you don’t get many chances in this league.
“It was difficult for a moment of time, but I kept at it. I worked this whole week at my finishing again. I am proud of my mentality and I am proud of the group.”
Leeds climbed six points clear of the relegation zone after their third league win of the season, while West Ham remain in the bottom three having taken just one point from their last five matches.
Nuno Espirito Santo is still waiting for his first win after four matches in charge, with the Hammers’ only league win this season coming at fellow strugglers Nottingham Forest in August.
Skipper Jarrod Bowen admitted after morale was currently low in the camp.
“Obviously, when you’re second-bottom in the league and you’ve won one game all season, the feeling is low,” he said. “We have to face up to the reality of where we are, and get results. We’ve done that over the years, but we’re not doing that now, and we’re not playing well, so we need to change that.”
West Ham boss Nuno Espirito Santo said he and his players face a “big, big challenge” to keep the club in the Premier League after the defeat at Leeds left them in the bottom three.
The Hammers have made their joint-worst start to a season, four points from their first nine fixtures.
Nuno said after the Londoners’ seventh league defeat of the season: “I’m worried since I arrived, so it’s not something that surprises me.
“We are worried, but we are committed and embrace the challenge that we have ahead – it’s a big one, a big, big one.”
Aaronson turned in a rebound after goalkeeper Alphonse Areola had parried Noah Okafor’s header in the third minute and Rodon headed home from Sean Longstaff’s 15th-minute corner.
Nuno said: “We started very bad again, very bad. The way we defended was bad. We improved in the second half, but it was not enough. (We have) concerns over so many things, our approach, individual duals, defensive tasks, our confidence. So many things.”
