John Eustace placed emphasis on Blackburn Rovers quietening the Elland Road crowd after attending their match against Sunderland in midweek.

Sam Szmodics' late strike ensured it was the perfect away day for the travelling Rovers contingent, who left Yorkshire with a spring in their step.

Rovers had performed admirably even before grabbing the winner. They defended deep but with intensity and posed a threat on the counter-attack.

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As the Elland Road crowd's nerves grew, Rovers sensed their chance. They'd already come close before a brilliant pass from Tyrhys Dolan threaded threw Szmodics and the rest is history.

Having watched a similar display from Sunderland on Tuesday night in their goalless draw with Leeds, Eustace prepped his players on how to play not just their opponents but the Elland Road faithful too.

"You come to Leeds United and that's why people write you off," Eustace said. 

"You come on the back of a defeat but the character we have is outstanding. We have been building that and it's important everyone keeps believing in that, through the highs and the lows. 

"To come here, against a team with Premier League quality all over the pitch and a huge fan base, we knew we had to quieten them.

"I think after 20 minutes we did that. I came here on Tuesday to the Sunderland game and watched that. We saw the timings of when the crowd turned and also how much energy they can give the place.

"We knew the game plan and we stuck to it. To come here and play against 11 top players, 40,000 very good fans, it was great. Our fans were fantastic too and they helped us get through the hard moments."

Rovers' game plan was to contain, with Eustace referencing Leeds' need to win as their opening to try and take all the points. The match played out as he predicted and as the gaps opened up, Szmodics made them pay.

"I thought it was an excellent goal. That's the football we have played since I've been here," he explained.

"Wednesday we had some good moments before we conceded. We have to believe in what we do. The team is together.

"We were always going to come here and be under the cosh. We were always going to be underdogs. That togetherness which we've been building in the last two months has been fantastic.

"You don't come to Leeds and go toe-to-toe with them with the quality of player they have got. We had a game plan, we knew they'd take more risk as the game went on.

"It was a great day today. The game plan worked, we know we have quality going forward. We could've played a bit more but we needed the victory and we got it."