Aleksandar Mitrović has, quite rightly, won most of the plaudits this season, having plundered 27 goals in just 25 Championship appearances.
But with the Serbian missing through illness last weekend, Rodrigo Muniz was drafted in as a like for like replacement up top.
He did not disappoint.
In addition to his first half brace – the first a screamer, and the second retrospectively awarded his way after a decisive touch to turn in Fabio Carvalho’s shot – it was also his bullet header which hit the crossbar on its way to Bobby De Cordova-Reid for the winner.
Muniz now actually has a better minutes-to-goal ratio than Mitrović, with the Brazilian finding the net every 71 minutes.
It’s something that naturally pleased his Head Coach, who also argued that it quashes any notion of an over-reliance on Mitro.
“That just shows the quality that Rodrigo has,” Marco Silva said. “It shows that our philosophy and our model doesn’t depend on one player. The way we play football, the way we create chances, doesn’t depend on one player.
“Of course, I need to take the best from them, and if it’s Mitro, if it’s Rodrigo, if it’s another player, my job is to take the best from them and give the conditions for them to perform at their best level.
“He’s a young boy, a young player who’s hungry to learn. It’s tough for him, coming from Brazil at 20-years-old, but he’s shown his quality and shown myself and my staff that we were right when we asked the Club to buy Rodrigo.”
