The Leeds United loanee deserved his starting spot ahead of Pontus Jansson.
Not for the first time this season Leeds United manager Thomas Christiansen opted to overlook centre-back Pontus Jansson, and the subsequent 3-0 victory against Bristol City proved him right.
There was a time when a Leeds line-up without the Swedish international sent shivers down the spines of Whites fans, but not anymore, with Liam Cooper and Matthew Pennington deserving their starting spots, keeping the hosts at bay and helping Leeds to a long overdue victory.
Pennington in particular looked a class act throughout and while Leeds may only have him for the rest of this season, it seems he came of age at the weekend.
At 23, the Leeds loanee will be desperate to play week in, week out, and he has shown that there is more to the club’s defence than Jansson, no matter how much of a fan favourite the 26-year-old is.
In fact, that is an argument to be had – although not all Leeds fans will agree – that Pennington has now usurped Jansson in the pecking order and deserves to keep his place alongside a resurgent Cooper.
It would have been easy for Pennington to have let his confidence slip after he was dropped for the recent defeat to Reading, but instead he came back from the 3-0 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday with a performance of steel and determination and that should be commended.
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