Standing in the tunnel after full-time on Sunday afternoon, Leeds United defender Joe Rodon cut a tired figure who had just come from the midst of battle.

The scoreline may have been handsome but let no-one tell you the 3-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday wasn’t a fight. Having microphones shoved in your face is sometimes the last thing you wish for after a bruising encounter so it’s always appreciated when a player takes time to chat.

Rodon - who has started every Championship match - leaned against the wall to take some of the burden off his tired feet as he spoke to reporters after the match, having helped them register a 15th clean sheet of the season.

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The 27-year-old was subject to a rough and late challenge in the second half that left him grounded for a minute or so. With Pascal Struijk facing at least another two-and-a-half weeks on the sidelines, the thought of Daniel Farke losing both of his primary centre-halves must have churned the stomachs of home supporters watching on.

Thankfully, Rodon rose to his feet and completed the game, with Farke later referring to his centre-back partnership with Ethan Ampadu as his "Welsh wall”. Asked about his knock, Rodon refused to make any complaints.

“This is part of the league, it’s a very physically demanding league,” he reasoned. “As long as I keep playing and working harder I don’t care what comes.”

United are top of the Championship once more and many bookmakers put the club as the most likely to secure promotion to the Premier League. Wednesday manager Danny Rohl was the latest to brand the Whites “the best team” in the league.

Rodon, though, is making sure he is not getting carried away with the excitement. “We know where we are in the position, we don’t need to look at that too much," he said. "The most important thing is the next game so Wednesday [vs Norwich City] is the focus and that’s all we look at.

“We worry about ourselves and putting in wins for our fans at home, keep building momentum.”

When asked whether it’s easier for players being the chasers or the chased when going for promotion and the title, Rodon replied: “I think we’ve been in all of those positions. So we don’t really think too much about that, all we want to do is get points on the board and let’s just see where that gets us. Like I said, the next is always the most important and we concentrate on ourselves.”

It’s a line that often gets trotted out by both players and managers when they are asked about chasing a goal, but that does not mean this is not the correct mindset to have.

Reality says it is inevitable that players will look at how their rivals are doing but ensuring they do not become fixated on that will be key if United are to get over the line.

Rodon is one of the leaders of the United team, both by action and by words. More bruising encounters are set to come but it’s the battle of the mind that perhaps will play the biggest role in returning back to the promised land. And Rodon seems to be winning it right now.