'Glorious' - Leeds United are back where they belong and deservedly so: David Prutton

They need to be applauded and saluted for what they have done this season.

United have stuck to a belief of what last season brought, even if the season ended in tears with defeat in the play-off semi-final.

At the beginning there was an element of the unknown with Marcelo Bielsa coming in as head coach and what he would decide to do.

I think that stood them in good stead going into this season but after that it’s been about being able to replicate and push on, which is exactly what they have done.

We were all looking to see how Leeds would react to the way that they finished last season and it’s been a measure of mental ability and emotional ability to be able to deal with the expectation and the pressure when things haven’t gone according to plan for a couple of games.

In those circumstances, they have had to pull it back and reset and implement exactly what Marcelo wants so I think it works from the top down.

Marcelo has been thoroughly instrumental in it all, delivering the play, unshakeable in his philosophy and very much preaching the collective but also at times being able to praise the individual.

On top of that he has not been afraid to change things in games such as in the instances when he even took Kalvin Phillips off.

The focus has always been on the team and that sounds like common sense in a team sport as that has to be the fundamental priority.

But Marcelo has also done that in a way that has been easy on the eye and Leeds have been more ruthless this season which shows by them sitting where they are at the top of the tree.

As much as Leeds were entertaining last season, the efficiency side of it has been thoroughly focused on this year, and that’s why they find themselves where they are – back in the Premier League.

You can’t really stress enough that it’s the collective that have raised their game.

Individuals have got more consistent and have been able to put out better performances consistently over a longer period of time which over the course of a very long season, and even longer season now, is to be applauded.

West Brom and Brentford have been piling on the pressure and Leeds have often had to play last which shows that the mentality of the team is one of resilience, one of being able to handle pressure and expectation.

Inherently with a Leeds United side the expectation is there and I say this with experience of messing around with them in the third division.

But that expectation doesn’t necessarily reflect the standard of the playing personnel at the specific period of time because the expectation is built on the shoulders of giants and men that have won things for that football club.

The players who wear the shirt know that is part and parcel of being a Leeds United player; a glorious part of being a Leeds United player because people genuinely care about the football club.

To get handed the opportunity to play for Leeds first off is a privilege and an honour but secondly it’s a case of what are you bringing to the table and you need dedication, the right attitude and a belief that you can do things in that shirt.

This club and this set of players have done that and risen to the expectation and positively flourished doing it.

We’ve seen periods over the last two seasons where there have been little blips but Leeds have managed to iron them out and they have restored enough goodwill with the fans to stick with them through thick and thin.

The fans always did that anyway but Marcelo has maintained an unshakable belief and even now when you can’t see the whites of the fans’ eyes you can most definitely feel it.

It will be glorious to see Leeds back in the Premier League.

If you ask fans in the street, it’s a club they will either love or hate and that reflects the size of the club and the club’s success in the past.

We like old institutions with history and tradition, which is exactly what Leeds is.

Being from Hull, it was a team I grew up extremely aware of as the closest big team, well before you could even imagine a Hull City team being in the Premier League.

It feels like another lifetime to think back when I was playing, and we have had 16 seasons since the club’s relegation in 2004 and the different periods of different managers.

I was looking back at the managers they have had and you are left thinking’ flipping heck, he was Leeds United manager?!’

It’s just bizarre.

On the flip side of it, you can also look back at the long list of players during that time and think ‘wow, he played for Leeds?’

I think the players that have been involved in this period away from the Premier League will have all absolutely understood the magnitude of the club and the responsibility of playing for the club.

To a man, they will be happy and pleased to see them return to the country’s elite level of football.

When you say a club deserves it, it’s a slightly misleading statement because the only ones who deserve to play at the top level are the ones at the top level because it’s a meritocracy and you have to command the division.

But Leeds deserve to be back there.

They have re-established themselves as a club that should be rubbing shoulders with the biggest clubs in the country.

And now they are.

Sky Bet Championship on Sky Sports, today: Stoke City v Brentford, Sky Sports Football, noon. Tomorrow: Derby County v Leeds United Sky Sports Football 1.30pm.