Ao Tanaka hailed as ex-Leeds star rages over official EFL announcement
Leeds United’s promotion to the Premier League has earned many of their stars plenty of praise.
A 6-0 victory over Stoke City on Easter Monday earned the Peacocks a return to the English top-flight.
The club now aim to lift the Championship title and currently sit top after Leeds’ 4-0 dismantling of Bristol City.
As a result of this season’s success, many players have been recognised by the EFL for their performance. However, the failure to give Ao Tanaka one award has sparked fury from ex-Leeds star Ross McCormack.
McCormack insists Ao Tanaka should have won Championship Player of the Year
There is no question that Tanaka has been fantastic for Leeds. The Japanese international has dominated the Championship and has been one of the biggest reasons for the club’s promotion.
Yet, at the EFL Awards night on Sunday, the midfielder was not awarded the Championship Player of the Year.
Instead, this went to Sheffield United’s Gustavo Hamer, with Scott Parker winning the Manager of the Year.
However, Tanaka was included in the Championship Team of the Season, alongside teammates Jayden Bogle and Dan James.
| Position | Player name | Club |
| GK | James Trafford | Burnley |
| RB | Jayden Bogle | Leeds United |
| CB | Maxime Esteve | Burnley |
| CB | CJ Egan-Riley | Burnley |
| LB | Harrison Burrows | Sheffield United |
| CM | Jobe Bellingham | Sunderland |
| CM | Gustavo Hamer | Sheffield United |
| CM | Ao Tanaka | Leeds United |
| RW | Dan James | Leeds United |
| ST | Josh Sargent | Norwich City |
| LW | Borja Sainz | Norwich City |
Former Leeds striker McCormack was less than pleased with this outcome and took to Instagram (29 April) to express his anger.
On his story, he posted a picture of a Tanaka shirt with the caption: “Rolls Royce this guy. Champ player of the year for me!”
Tanaka key to Leeds’ Premier League survival
There is no question that the next campaign is going to be long and gruelling.
For the past two seasons, all three promoted teams from the Premier League have been relegated and Leeds will be aiming to break this trend.
The club has all the tools it needs to stay up, however, Tanaka is no doubt going to be key to survival.
The midfielder can dominate matches with his play, and against some of the weaker teams, he could be the difference between and win and a draw.
With further additions expected in the summer, Farke must build a team around him to give the club a starting point to push up the table.