Friday 24 November 2017 15:35, UK
First came Sam Byram. Fleet of foot, pacy, with a dynamism rarely seen in Neil Warnock's Leeds tenure. Then Alex Mowatt. Gifted with the ability to pick out the top corner time and time again from outside the box.
Lewis Cook followed. The fact Gareth Southgate saw fit to bring him into England's squad against Brazil covers that one. And finally Charlie Taylor. Acrimonious departure, but a gifted left-back and former Player of the Year. The awesome foursome from the academy appeared in that order. And all were sold by this summer.
Ronaldo Vieira is the current poster boy despite his sending off on Wednesday, and deserves the plaudits after a stunning debut season under Garry Monk. But there's another local central midfielder currently going quietly about his business, who is making people sit up and take notice at Elland Road and beyond.
Kalvin Phillips is 22 next month. Making his league debut in the same season as Cook and Taylor, he introduced himself to the Elland Road faithful in memorable fashion too, sweeping home against Cardiff for a home debut goal. No further appearances followed in that campaign, but plenty more was expected in 2015/16.
The season started brightly as he played three early Championship games under new boss Uwe Rosler, but he was soon shown the door. Three appearances in Steve Evans' first four games follow, but he then slipped into the background. But Monk saw more faith. Phillips played 40 games in all competitions as Leeds pushed for promotion last season.
Another season and another manager at Leeds, but Thomas Christiansen had one key piece of advice for the him - cut out the chocolate cake! It seems to have worked. Phillips has made the most starts of any Leeds central midfielder this season, despite fierce competition. And he's added goals to his game. He's currently their joint-top scorer in the league with five, the same as striker Pierre-Michel Lasogga.
Already closing in on last year's minutes total, he's passing the ball less and also less accurately. But there has been a massive improvement in his end product. Competition for places looked tricky at the start of the season but Phillips has nailed down his role.
He also impresses defensively. He averages 3.2 tackles per 90 minutes, slightly less than Vieira, but more than O'Kane. All three have around the same number of interceptions per 90 minutes. Phillips does have seven yellow cards to his name, providing bite in midfield, though there was one tackle in particular against Sheffield United that he was perhaps lucky to get away with.
Sometimes a little bit of inconsistency can divide some about his worth, and Phillips certainly found it hard against Wolves in midweek, But Phillips has provided some big moments this season, in particular the two goals on the opening day against Bolton and a cracking volley at home to Sheffield United.
It's easy to forget Phillips is still only 21 given that he, Liam Cooper and Gaetano Berardi are the only three players left from the 2013/14 season currently on the books. Christiansen's put plenty of faith in him to play a crucial part in Leeds' engine room, both attacking and defending and Phillips has delivered so far.
There's a bright future for one of the few remaining home-grown talents left at Elland Road. As long as he stays off the chocolate cake.
Don't miss the Sky Bet Championship clash between Barnsley and Leeds on Saturday, live on Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Main Event from 12pm
