Nico Elvedi's Strong Debut at Leeds United

Nico Elvedi walked off at the City Ground with a win, a debut and a grin that said plenty about his new life at Leeds United.

Thrown straight into the Carabao Cup second-round tie at Nottingham Forest, the summer signing came through a rugged introduction to English football and emerged sounding every inch a defender ready for the fight.

"It was great. I'm proud of this team after that performance. We deserved this win, but it was a very strong performance from the home team as well. I'm happy we are going through to the next stage," Elvedi said, reflecting on the victory.

Leeds had to earn it. Forest, roared on at home, pushed hard, but Elvedi anchored himself in the contest with the kind of duel that defines centre-backs in this country: a physical, relentless battle with Chris Wood.

"My performance was OK. I had a hard battle with Chris Wood which wasn't easy," he admitted. "I like it when the player I'm marking is strong, and I think I did well. There are still things for me to improve but, for my first game of the season, it was OK."

No fanfare, no overstatement. Just a defender quietly satisfied with a job largely done, and honest enough to acknowledge there is more to come.

What shines through already is how quickly he has settled in West Yorkshire. The move from Borussia Monchengladbach ended an 11-year chapter of his career, a long stretch that turned a promising youngster into an established international and made the Bundesliga club feel like home.

"I'm so happy to be here," he said. "I have some great new team-mates, so it was very easy to come to this club. Every day is fun coming into the training sessions and playing on the pitch with these good players."

Leaving that comfort was no small decision.

"It was hard because that club was my family. I had a lot of good memories there, but this is a new step in my career so I'm happy to be here."

One cup tie in, Elvedi has his first minutes, his first win and his first real taste of Leeds United. The next test will be whether this calm, combative debut becomes the standard in league play – and whether his “new step” can help drive Leeds back to where they believe they belong.