Striker Patrick Bamford is refusing to underestimate Leeds United's upcoming crop of fixtures after moving back into the Championship's automatic promotion places with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Luton Town at Kenilworth Road on Saturday afternoon.
The Whites struck late on thanks to an own-goal from Hatters defender Matty Pearson after James Collins had cancelled out Bamford's opener. The win over the lowly Hatters was Leeds' first of four consecutive games against sides currently in the Championship's bottom seven.
Despite a favourable run of fixtures against Reading (A), Middlesbrough (H) and Huddersfield Town (A) to come in the next three games, Bamford, who took his tally of goals for the season to six against Luton, is refusing to get too carried away, insisting that Leeds cannot automatically think that this upcoming period will guarantee them the chance to pull away from the rest of the pack.
"When people do that, obviously you get carried away," admitted Bamford when asked if this upcoming period will offer Leeds the chance to pull clear. "You'll have run away with the league if you look at it that way. It's not like that.
"We've come to Luton near the bottom and it wasn't easy. Yes, we probably had a lot of possession and chances but it was by no means an easy game. I think there is going to be more like that.
"We just have to listen to what the manager has told us, implement his tactics for the individual games and don't get ahead of ourselves."
Next up for the Whites is Tuesday evening's long trip to the Madejski Stadium to face a Reading side who are still in a transitional period under new manager Mark Bowen.
Looking ahead to that game and the sort of challenge that Reading will pose, Bamford continued: "To be honest, Reading are quite a possession-based team, they enjoy to play the ball. I don't think it'll be quite the same as here (Luton). Then again, it could be.
"I reckon they'll try and express themselves and maybe go toe-to-toe, but you never know in this league."
Should Reading look to go for the win and express their quality in the final third, Bamford believes that may just play into the Whites' hands, adding: "Maybe. It's just one of them where you have to see, judge it in the first five minutes and play it from there."
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