A Leeds United attacker who came in for praise for his first half at Everton and criticise for his second half has found a kindred spirit in Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Brenden Aaronson's current Leeds reality could hardly be further from his Elland Road nadir. Trudging around the pitch on the final day of the season, relegated from the Premier League, as a big money signing with far too few goals and assists and an unwanted reputation as a player incapable of keeping his feet in duels, perhaps it was no real surprise that Aaronson saw a way out and took it. But the decision to leave on loan, as one of the relegation clause gang, only further estranged him from the Whites fanbase.

Upon his return, Aaronson could not expect a warm reception or open arms. He fronted up to interviews and then knuckled down and goals helped him turn boos into cheers. The criticism has never been too far away, however, because the areas of his game that needed to improve were still there - struggling to turn great positions into goals, running into blind alleys after doing the hard work of winning the ball and initially keeping it.

This season, however, Aaronson has kicked on impressively, turning groans of Elland Road frustration into roars of approval. The side of his game that was always there - the work ethic and distance covered - has been better appreciated because he has shown quality on the ball. Goals always help, as Calvert-Lewin knows very well. He too has been criticised and maligned, polarising opinion at Everton on occasions and arriving at Elland Road shrouded in question marks and the doubt of others. So he's well positioned to comment on Aaronson's Renaissance, not only having been through similar but having had a front row seat as the player often closest to the American on the pitch for Leeds and a member of a dressing room that Daniel Farke recently said was keenly aware and frustrated by what was being aimed at Aaronson. Calvert-Lewin’s delight was written all over his face as he picked Aaronson up and pushed him towards the fans after the latter’s opener against Manchester United.

"He's been excellent," Calvert-Lewin told the YEP. "And more importantly, you know, what a top guy. I was so thrilled for him [scoring against Manchester United and Newcastle] maybe because I can relate, I don't know. I can relate to what he's going through and what he's been through. And it's like I've touched on before, the only way you can change that is by performances on the football pitch. You can think what you want as a person, as a player, but people form their opinions, and it's not about proving people right or wrong, but what you can do on a football pitch, but you need evidence. And Brenden's form recently is the evidence that he needed, and everyone needed to see, to show that he belongs and he deserves to play."

Calvert-Lewin's last point is an important one. Aaronson's place in the team was a source of debate and no little chagrin even in the Championship. Few were backing Farke's decision to stick with him in the Premier League, until they started to see what the manager believed was there in the 25-year-old. But such a debate is rarely settled definitively or even for a long period. The way Aaronson played for the opening 45 minutes at Hill Dickinson Stadium would be enough to guarantee any player a start in the very next game. The way he performed in the second half was a pale imitation of that. And the arrival of Facundo Buonanotte, a player who can operate on the right or centrally with plenty of guile and a hunger for running, asks a new question of Aaronson.

It can only be a good thing for Leeds if Aaronson responds to this new challenge in the way he has answered criticism this season. Squad depth is not just for insurance purposes and injury cover, it can and should bring the best out of players and force them to strive for even better performance levels. As a loan player, Buonanotte has come to Leeds to get minutes and show he can cut it in the Premier League and anything he can add in terms of final third end product will be a huge boost for Farke. But if he also spurs Aaronson on to even better things, or even if that is all he can bring to Leeds, the move will have been entirely worthwhile.