'I knew it was going in' - Mateo Joseph reveals emotions of first Leeds United goals and dressing room embrace — YEP 28/2/24

Leeds United's newest goalscorer Mateo Joseph shared his disappointment at going out of the FA Cup to Chelsea on Wednesday night but personal delight after scoring his first goals in professional football.

By Joe Donnohue

The 20-year-old England youth international was named in Daniel Farke's starting XI at Stamford Bridge as Leeds faced up against Premier League opponents Chelsea in the Fifth Round of the FA Cup.

United opened the scoring through Joseph who netted confidently after fellow youngster Archie Gray had won a tackle and turned over possession in Chelsea's penalty area. The Blues rallied, scoring twice before the break through Nicolas Jackson and Mykhailo Mudryk but Joseph struck again in the second half, this time with his head.

Arriving onto the end of a looping Jaidon Anthony cross at the back post, Joseph guided the ball home before celebrating in front of the scores of Whites fans in the Shed End away section. Conor Gallagher's 90th minute winner, at the end of a second half which Leeds largely saw the better of, ultimately put an end to the Whites' unbeaten streak in 2024 and their cup run but there were plenty of positives to take from a testing evening in West London, not least Joseph's brace.

"It could have been better with winning the game and [going] to the next round but a dream come true [to score]," Joseph said at full-time.

"To be honest, that ball, I knew it was going in," the youngster added, describing the moment he notched his second of the game in front of the travelling supporters. "So many times that ball comes in and [I] put in across the 'keeper, across the face [of goal] and then it's just celebrate with the fans. I think I could have scored another one but it's getting even better every day and trying to improve that."

Joseph revealed he shared an embrace after full-time with teammate Gray, with whom he had played at Stamford Bridge before, in a 1-0 defeat for Leeds' Under-21s two seasons ago.

"We were there in the shower, we hugged each other, we said 'remember when we were playing here with the 21s'.

"Hopefully it's a long journey with him and we can bring to the club big things and so many wins."

The youngster, whose grandmother lives a stone's throw from Stamford Bridge, also explained that while his parents and biggest supporters were not present, he did have family members and associates at the ground to see him score his first goals in professional football.

"My father is in Spain and my mother is in Leeds. So, when I go back I will have my dinner ready," Joseph finished, with a smile.

Leeds return to action on Saturday lunchtime away to Huddersfield Town in the Championship, before a home fixture against Stoke City followed by another Yorkshire derby at Hillsborough.