Ethan Ampadu will be looking to round off his debut season at Leeds United with a play-off final victory over Southampton.
With Liam Cooper likely to be on the bench, Ampadu will almost certainly be leading the Whites onto the Wembley turf, in a clear example of just how impressive a signing he has been.
Cooper has backed the Welshmen to fill his shoes of captaining Leeds, which he has already taken significant strides in doing so, having worn the armband for almost the whole second half of the season.
Ampadu has only had one proper season in the Premier League across his career so far, which is when Sheffield United went down with a whimper in 2020/21, while games were still behind-closed-doors.
He will certainly be among the players with that extra incentive to go and get the job done in the play-off final this weekend, so he can finally get a real crack at English football’s top-flight.
Ampadu shares what he’s learned about Leeds since joining
Ampadu could not have asked for a better debut season since his £7 million arrival from Chelsea last summer, the first signing of the 49ers Enterprises era.
He has played all but one minute of all 48 of Leeds’ Championship matches, playing the first half in central midfield, before then dropping to centre-back in the ongoing absence of Pascal Struijk.
The 23-year-old was named in the Championship TOTS alongside Georginio Rutter and Crysencio Summerville, while also winning Leeds’ individual POTS.
Despite all those achievements, though, Ampadu says there is one hilarious thing in particular he has learned about Leeds as a club since his arrival from Stamford Bridge.
Speaking to BBC Sport, he said: “Definitely, you also understand that a lot of people hate Leeds. It just kind of is what it is. We have our goals, I said that in a jokey way but you do understand how big the club is when you are here.
“From fans waiting outside, to fans waiting after the game, or at the game like you say if you do see them in the city, you get that understanding of how big Leeds is as a club.”
What has made Ampadu learn this about Leeds?
Leeds fans are not one to hide from the fact they are disliked by so many other clubs, and so they will be pleased to hear that Ampadu has learned this so quickly.
One major reason Ampadu may have grown to acknowledge this is just how focused Leicester City’s promotion celebrations were on Leeds.
Whether the fans in the stands, players on the pitch, or even at their awards ceremony, Leicester were persistently signing about Leeds due to that night at Elland Road in which they were beaten 3-1.
Countless sides have all seen their highest crowds of the season also come against Leeds, including Preston North End, Coventry City and Huddersfield Town just to name a few.