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Joe Donnohue

Leeds United finally achieve supremacy over every Premier League opponent with Southampton win

Despite sitting tenth in the Premier League table, Leeds United are feared and revered in equal measure by those who go toe-to-toe with them on the pitch.

Premier League footballers are elite athletes, individuals at the pinnacle of peak performance, and yet Leeds have opposing sports scientists and fitness coaches scratching their heads.

Over the course of 25 games in this year's Premier League season, no team has outran Leeds United in a single game. That means to say collectively, Leeds have covered more kilometres per game than their direct opponent on each of their 25 outings.

With the latest victory over Southampton, both in terms of result and in the running stakes, Leeds have now outran each of their 19 Premier League opponents - a scientific improbability if ever there was one.

Bielsa on Raphinha's performance

Naturally, teams are expected to raise and lower their games as their performances and fitness levels ebb and flow throughout the course of a season.

In the Premier League, where standards are notched that little bit higher, Leeds United's ability to outwork every opponent is somewhat astounding.

As far as labels go, Leeds could quite easily be crowned the fittest team in the Premier League, and at the very least, the hardest-working outfit in the division.

It's made all the more unbelievable considering how thin Marcelo Bielsa likes to keep his squad. Players such as Luke Ayling, Mateusz Klich, Jack Harrison and Patrick Bamford have all featured in an enormous portion of Leeds' season so far, whilst maintaining these impossibly high standards.

Bielsa spoke at length about his future earlier this week, also commending his players for their work ethic.

"Coaches who demand a lot are many, they are infinite. To have footballers who accept the high demands, there are very few.

"So the improvements that the Leeds United players have had has more to do with their capacity to adhere to this effort, rather than me," the Argentine said.

Leeds have covered 2,846 kilometres as a team so far this season, according to Opta - that is equivalent to running between Leeds and London, there and back, almost five times.

Whether Leeds have the ability to outrun every Premier League opponent twice and record a rather different kind of invincible season remains to be seen, although with only 13 matches to go, it could happen.

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