Daniel Farke’s Leeds United team selections have never been straight forward this season. He picks and chooses lineups to suit opponents in some games.
Fans were not pleased when a few months into the campaign, he started using Brenden Aaronson frequently. That was among a long list of decisions the Leeds boss had taken from the start of the campaign.
Leaving Jaka Bijol on the bench, and keeping Joel Piroe out of the lineup baffled a lot of people.
The midfield seemed to be a rotating cast throughout the campaign. It was Stach, Ampadu and Longstaff to start the season, before the former Newcastle man got injured.
Ilia Gruev then became an important part of the lineup at some point in the season.
Leeds United star almost left Elland Road in January
All this meant that Ao Tanaka, who was the Players’ Player of the Year last season, had to sit on the bench. Fans were a bit confused as to why Gruev had jumped ahead of him in the pecking order.
Unfortunately, the Bulgarian suffered a season-ending injury which allowed Tanaka to return to the fold. And he finished the season on a strong note.
Tanaka has been speaking on his season, and mentioned that he almost chose to leave Elland Road in January.
“There were talks of a transfer in the winter, and I thought about moving, but I really wanted to play in the Premier League. I told my teammates who weren’t playing either, ‘Watch out, my time will definitely come.’ And it really did come.” he told Hochi Sport.
“I think of life as a stock market. There are times when it falls, like during the Lehman Shock or the pandemic, but I thought it would be good if it kept rising. I never stopped believing and continuing.”
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Leeds should keep Ao Tanaka
With how well the 27-year old ended the season, he has enough credit in the bank heading into the next campaign.
Tanaka played really well when he came back into the lineup, and impressed. His ability on the ball is a trait not many midfield options in the team have. Leeds also need depth, so letting him go is not an option.
The club may decide to splash the cash on new signings in the summer, but the midfield is not an area of the pitch that needs urgent attention.
Ao Tanaka should remain a part of this squad under Farke heading into next season.
Tanaka is, surely, one of the core players the club should be building the squad around for the upcoming season … ok, he’s made mistakes but, who hasn’t, and imo, the team lacks something when he doesn’t play. He helps spread the ball around and is one player who can break through the defensive lines.