Patrick Bamford is striking up a partnership with Brazilian Raphinha – by speaking French.
The Leeds playmaker has yet to learn English and mainly communicated in his native Portuguese around Elland Road.
But studious Bamford has stuck up an on and off-field friendship with the £17m, five-goal new boy by using his A-level French.
When he joined he didn't speak English. He can speak a very small amount and is doing lessons. Because I can speak French, he was in France (at Rennes) last year, so we can talk.
“It means we got a rapport straight away because I made that effort. I joked with him after the Newcastle game when he shot instead of squaring it to me for a tap in.
“Ever since then he has always looked to me. We are always talking on the pitch saying where I want it, or where he wants it.
“We get on well. We work together on defensive corners too. We talk on who attacks the ball in front or goes behind. It is constant. We have a link up in everything.
“Mind it is broken French with a very English accent! When French people hear it they think the accent is brutal, but they understand.”
Bamford is delighted with Leeds' performances which have seen three wins in four games, the only defeat a narrow one to Everton.
Bamford said: “The last three games, not just personally but as a team, have been excellent. The Everton game, I didn't realise Jamie Carragher said it was one of our worst performances. We deserved a point, arguably we could have all three.”
Leeds visit Arsenal this weekend and 12-goal Bamford told the club's podcast: “If at the start of the season you'd have said at the start of February you'll go to Arsenal ahead of them in the league no one would have believed it.
“We don't want to get ahead of ourselves but we want to see how far we can get.”
